
^Twelve Leiroru^ 


Lesson I 

Iniroduciion 

How to select 
clothes and colors 
that suit your type. 
Lessons in making 
simple stitches, 
seams and finishes. 
The correct way to 
take measure¬ 
ments. Sewing 
equipment. 



Isahe 



'/jover 






A COMPLETE COURSE IN 

DRESSMAKING 


BY 

ISABEL DeNYSE CONOVER 



LESSON I 
INTRODUCTION 


NEW YORK 

EDWARD J. CLODE 

. 























COPYRIGHT, 1921, 1922, BY 
EDWARD J. CLODE 



PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 


©C1A600002 

JAN -A 23 

I 









LESSON I 


WHAT DOES STYLE MEAN TO YOU? 

Of course you want to be stylish. Every 
sensible woman does. But do you know how 
to acquire the well-dressed look? Is it some¬ 
thing you are able to accomplish one time and 
not another? Or perhaps, you can select smart 
clothes for yourself and can’t help Cousin 
Louise overcome a dowdy appearance. Or do 
you admire Mrs. Jones’ new blue dress just be¬ 
cause it has that quality “chic” and accept 
as inevitable your own unbecoming brown 
dress? 

Has it occurred to you that you and Cousin 
Louise and in fact every other woman can be 
stylishly dressed? People may be born beauti¬ 
ful, but certainly they are not born stylish. 
It’s a clothes sense that they acquire. They 
learn to wear clothes that are suitable. And 
there is the whole secret summed up in one 
word. 

If I were asked to give a synonym for the 
word stylish , I think I’d say suitable . You 

[ 1 ] 


A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


know that it doesn’t make any difference how 
beautiful a dress may be, just as a dress, if it 
is inappropriate for the place or unbecoming 
to the wearer, you never think of it as stylish. 
Now do you? There are three great big im¬ 
portant things to remember when you are se¬ 
lecting a dress, whether it is for yourself or for 
someone else. 

First: It is important that the style of the 
dress suit the place or occasion for 
which it is intended. 

Second: The design of the dress must suit 
the season—in other words be near 
enough to the prevailing mode not to 
be conspicuous. 

Third: See to it that the lines and color 
of the dress suit the wearer. 

If your dress will pass these tests, you may 
rest assured that it is stylish. After all, style 
in the true sense of the word is more than a 
mere Paris label, a pretty picture or a fine 
texture. It isn’t enough for a piece of ma¬ 
terial to be charming on the counter or a style 
pretty in the picture. Ask yourself how the 
dress is going to look when you make it up 
and put it on or when Sally Jones wears it. 
Put it through the little suitability test. 

Probably more errors are committed in 
selecting extreme styles than in any other way. 
To be sure, there are people who can carry 
off the bizarre in dress but they are the dashing 
[ 2 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


type. We might as well recognize the fact 
in the beginning that we can’t all dash. 

Make the most of the looks and personality 
which you have . If you are demure or digni¬ 
fied or just pleasantly in between, watch out 
or the ultra styles will eclipse you. 

You don’t want to be remembered as a 
dressmaker’s dummy carrying around a pretty 
frock or the woman who wore the tight skirt, 
the big collar or the queer sleeves. 

I think one of the finest compliments which 
can be paid a person’s appearance is the ex¬ 
clamation, “I can’t remember exactly what 
she wore but she was dressed in such good 
taste and her clothes suited her splendidly”. 

Remember that your clothes ought to make you 
look your very best . Clothes can do kindly 
things—bring out the pretty lights in your 
hair, make you look an inch taller or hide the 
awkward curve of your hips—or they can be 
very, very unkind. It is not always the out-of- 
date dress either that is the hard task master. 

A ruffle may be a charming accessory in the 
shop window but when roily polly Louise wears 
it, it just attracts attention to the fact that 
her hips are unusually large. Just the fact 
that a dress is the latest mode—that last word 
in fashion—is no guarantee that it is the stylish 
selection for every woman. 

[ 3 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


It is well to keep in mind that every season 
brings a few extremes along with many 
charming wearable clothes. 

There is the matter of dollars and cents, 
too. It is another place where it is easy to 
lose the true value of style. Expensive is not 
a synonym for stylish. It’s line and cut and 
becomingness that counts everytime. There 
is no truer saying in the world that clothes 
are more often overdone than underdone. 

Costly materials may be very beautiful in 
themselves but they must be cleverly handled 
to equal the simple charm of an inexpensive 
goods well cut and well made. As a matter 
of fact, where the dress is becoming as 
a whole , in 
admiring it 
one forgets to 
analyse the 
texture. If you 
will just stop 
and think of 
the pretty 
dresses which 
you have seen 
lately, I am 
sure that you 
will agree 
with me. 

One must 

remember Fig. (/) Elaborate material is just as 
ton tli t ^ rnuch out of place in an everyday environ- 
IOO, mat an ment as calico is in a ballroom. 

[ 4 ] 




PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


elaborate material is just as much out of place 
in an everyday environment as calico is in a ball¬ 
room. Perhaps, I ought not 
to have specified calico for 
it has come up in the world 
so lately that one would 
} hardly be surprised to find 
it rubbing elbows with silks 
and satins. But this brings 
us back to the question of 
suitability again and the 
first rule on page 2. 

In order to be stylish , your 
clothes must suit the purpose 
and the occasion for which 
they are intended . 

You may not have thought 

Fig. (2) Do you of if \ n J U . St th ' S . Wa y> but 
know what to wear there is etiquette in clothes 

for every occasion? the same as J n tab J e 

manners. Here are a few of the general rules. 



CLOTHES ETIQUETTE: 

CLOTHES THAT SUIT THE PLACE 
AND THE SEASON 

Sport's Clothes . Do you know off hand 
just what you should wear when you golf or 
play tennis or ride or tramp cross country? It 
is pleasant to have the assurance that your 
clothes are just right in every particular. 

[ 5 ] 






A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


After all, we are judged by our clothes. 
Whether or not they speak truthfully, to the 
world at large, they tell what kind of a person 
you are. A little attention to the small details 
will make them tell a pleasant story. 

Suppose we consider first the correct clothes 
for tennis —that game which is becoming uni¬ 
versally popular. Of course, no one bothers 
to dress specially just for a little informal 
game on their own side lawn. However, there 
is a certain type of costume that one has 
grown to expect in the tournaments at the 
country clubs. 

The accepted costume is all that could be 
desired for comfort—a short, two-piece or 
plaited silk or woolen skirt and a plain tailored 
blouse of batiste, handkerchief linen or crepe 
de chine with comfortable V neck. I might 
add that the popular woolen sports skirt is 
striped. 

Tennis is a hatless game. The hair ought 
to be dressed in a close simple manner. A 
narrow ribbon tied around the head, low over 
the forehead in the front and tied in the back 
is a becoming accessory which will serve to 
keep the hair in place. 

White canvas or buckskin oxfords or shoes 
with flat rubber soles are the only footwear 
permissible for tennis. 

Of course, a sweater is a necessity for after 
the game. Both silk and woolen sweaters 
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PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


are worn. One may have a subdued tone, 
black or any gay color that fancy dictates in 
the sweater. 

Golf clothes seem to be in a state of evolution. 
At some of the smart links, women are wearing 
tweed suits with knickers. It must be remem¬ 
bered that this is the extreme, not the gener¬ 
ally accepted custom. And it's a fact that a 
woman in knickerbockers is very conspicuous. 

A costume that is very smart at the present 
time for golf consists of a tailored blouse, a 
sleeveless wool jersey dress and a box-coat to 
match. The regulation wool jersey, tweed 
or homespun suit which has an amply wide 
skirt and a belted box coat is also worn with 
tailored waists. Although blouses with V 
necks and flat collars are worn, the preferred 
waist is in shirt style with high soft collar. 
It is usually made of pongee, crepe de chine 
or linen and worn with a man’s knitted silk tie. 

In warm weather, separate woolen or silk 
skirts are worn with tailored waists of batiste 
or wash silk. To complete the costume, 
invariably there is a sweater. 

The collapsible small felt, ribbon or straw 
hats are the accepted hats for golf. Shoes or 
oxfords of durable calfskin are to be preferred 
to fancy sports shoes. 

There are special golf gloves with holes over 
the knuckles to give greater freedom to the 
hands. 


T71 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


The riding habit depends on two 
things: a person’s age and the 
environment. The young girl in 
her ’teens wears a tweed suit con¬ 
sisting of a box coat and riding 
breeches for riding across 
country, in town or even for 
an exhibition. 

This costume is usually com¬ 
pleted with a blocked tricone or 
a soft felt hat and riding boots. 

Very often out in the country a 
woman also wears a tweed suit, 
box coat and breeches instead of 
a skirt. However, if she is riding 
Fig(s) The town, her suit is a little more 
y a Ut !Lfd riding formal. The coat is oxford cloth 
baba wiih or t will and fitted. Her riding 
breeches are of twill or checked 
material or she has a divided skirt to match 
her coat. Her hat is either the regulation 
sailor or tricone. 

For indoors exhibition riding, women usually 
choose the side saddle which calls for the 
regulation side-saddle habit and high silk hat. 

The ideal suit for knockabout country wear 
is a three-piece one of tweed, homespun or 
khaki. There is a coat cut in box style and 
belted, a pair of knickerbockers and a skirt. 
The skirt buttons up the front and if occasion 
warrants can be worn as a cape. The outfit 
IB] 




PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


is completed with a shirt blouse, a soft felt 
hat and high lace calf skin shoes. 

Perhaps, when you first read the heading 
Sport's Clothes , you thought of the type of 
costume that has become generally popular 
and is called sport’s clothes. I have in mind 
the silk skirts, dainty handmade blouses and 
rather elaborate sweaters which are called 
sport’s clothes but have no place in real 
sports. They are the clothes which are worn 
in the mountains, country, seashore resorts 
and suburban towns for before noon and even 
in the afternoon for out of doors. The skirts 
are of fibre silk in white or a pastel shade and 
the blouses of batiste, lawn, voile 
or organdie trimmed with drawn 
work, handrun tucks and delicate 
Valenciennes filet or lace. 

Clothes for Afternoon: If 
afternoon means calling and tea, 
then you need the type of a frock 
which is often termed “dressy.” 

Usually an afternoon frock is of 
silk, but its material depends 
somewhat on the season. 

You may indulge your incli¬ 
nations in mid-summer to the 
extent of an organdie, batiste or 
mull dress for calling or after- ^ 
noon. Mid-winter varies the rule Fig. (4) A sensu 
also, and one might include vel- sibie choice 

9 . iiii J or afternoon ts 

vet, duvetyn or broadcloth along a silk frock . 

[ 9 ] 




A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


with silks such as chiffon, crepe de chine, 
Canton crepe, and charmeuse as possibilities 
for the afternoon type of dress. 

As to style, an afternoon dress has a slightly 
low neck, and elbow, three-quarter, or full 
length sleeves. The skirt usually shows some 
elaboration such as a tunic or slight drapery. 



Clothes for 
Evening: It is 
difficult to put 
evening clothes 
under just one 
heading for here is 
where a woman’s 
age and general 
appearance makes 
a difference. 

The young girl 
and the petite 
woman may choose 
for dances or other 
formal evening 
Fig. (S) Choose your functions the type 

evening dress to suit of COStUme which 

your type. j s generally termed 

a dance frock. This has a tight fitting bodice 
with straps on the shoulders. It may or may 
not have tulle sleeve caps. The skirt is 
short and bouffant. 


The dress in vogue for the more dignified 
type of woman is made of rich brocade, satin 
[ 10 ] 




PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


or velvet and draped to the figure. Often it 
has a V decollete in the back and a mere wisp 
of the material forms a short train. 

Of course, in the summertime a simple low- 
neck organdie dance frock is quite correct for 
evening. 

A type of dress which is popular for restau¬ 
rant dinner wear and the theatre has only a 
slightly low neck and no sleeves. It is made 
of silk, lace or velvet. It is not necessary 
to wear an evening dress or a restaurant 
dinner dress to the theatre unless one is to be 
seated in a box or is joining a party who 
are formally dressed for evening. If one’s 
escort is wearing street clothes, it is permis¬ 
sible to wear street clothes such as a suit or 
tailored frock. 

For little informal evening socials, an after¬ 
noon frock is in good taste. 

If one attends evening functions, some sort 
of a wrap of taffeta, satin, brocade or velvet 
is a necessity. 

With a formal evening gown one should go 
hatless. However, a hat is worn with a 
restaurant dinner dress. 

Street Clothes: Whether you live in the 
city or the country, your wardrobe must have 
one or two costumes in it suitable for what is 
termed street wear. It’s the semi-tailored type 
of costume one puts on for a shopping excur¬ 
sion or a trip to town. 

[HI 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


Of course, your street costume may be a 
suit, completed with a georgette or dainty 
hand-made batiste blouse. However, many 
women prefer a one-piece dress. 

For cool weather a serge, tricotine, velour 
or wool jersey is a good choice for a dress. 
With this a wrap is necessary for mid-winter. 
In early fall or late spring, the dress is often 
worn with a fur neck piece. Linen and ging¬ 
ham and dark colored organdies make attrac¬ 
tive summer street dresses. Navy, brown 
and black silk are also made in plain styles 
for the street. 

The hat worn with the street dress or suit 
ought to be neither severely tailored nor 
elaborate. It’s the medium size or small hat 
with a touch of trimming—one might almost 
say in-between hat—that looks the best with 
this type of costume. 

While women do not follow the rules con¬ 
cerning footwear as closely as they used to, 
strictly speaking, the correct shoe or oxford 
for the street has a straight heel. 

When You Travel: Either a suit or a dark 
one-piece dress is correct to wear on the train. 
A small semi-tailored hat is to be preferred to 
a large one. A pullman robe of dark cotton, 
silk or corduroy, which is worn from the berth 
to the dressing room, is in better taste than a 
light or bright colored kimono. 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


It is a matter 
of taste, whether 
or not a woman 
wears her hat in 
the dining car. 

In some hotels 
it is really neces¬ 
sary to dress for 
dinner. The 
style of dinner 
dresses varies, 
but usually the 
neck is low and 
the sleeves very 
short or the dress 

is sleeveless. Fig. ( 6) A top coat is a necessity for an 

Satin, brocades, # 

velvet and crepe silks and lace are used for 
dinner dresses. 

However, in the majority of hotels it is per¬ 
missible to wear a street costume or an after¬ 
noon frock for dinner. On the other hand, on 
shipboard one is expected to dress for dinner. 
As a matter of fact, it is well to take two eve¬ 
ning dresses, one on the order of a dinner dress 
with only a slightly low neck, and the other a 
more elaborate evening gown as there is 
usually some special occasion for which one 
needs it. 

Besides a suit, one needs a warm top coat 
if taking an ocean voyage. While it is not a 
necessity, a sports costume consisting of a silk 
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A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


or wool skirt and sweater or jersey jacket adds 
a nice change. 

The Business Woman: Just because a 
woman is a business woman is no reason why 
she must lose her feminine attractiveness or 
dress so very differently from other women. 
On the other hand, she doesn’t want to look 
out of place. The one-piece dress has been a 
boon to her. It is her special standby. 


For cool weather, a dress of 
serge, twill or velour freshened up 
with several changes of dainty 
collars and cuffs of batiste or 
organdie will keep her looking spic 
and span and attractive, too, six 
days in the week. 

Navy blue or brown linen, ging¬ 
ham, swiss or organdie make an 
inconspicuous and serviceable 
office dress for summer. It’s a 
good idea, too, having a dark silk 
office dress made in some plain 
becoming style. 

There are certain types of sports 
costumes which are suited to the 
business woman’s purpose. Wool 
jersey and homespun suits are business 
among these. ^A silk skirt, a woman * 
dainty blouse, and a sweater is also quite 
in keeping with an office. 

[14] 




PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


CORRECT MOURNING 

Ideas about mourning have changed in the 
past few years. Now a person wears mourn¬ 
ing or not according to their own inclination. 
The tendency of the times is to wear lighter 
mourning, and lessen the periods of mourning. 
However, a few general suggestions may prove 
helpful. 

The Periods of Mourning: A widow wears 
mourning from one to two years. You will 
remember that it was only a little while ago 
when a widow hesitated to take off mourning 
in the third year, and our grandmothers can 
remember when it was a life-time proposition. 
Another thing which has changed about 
mourning is what was called third mourning. 
This has been entirely dispensed with. 

The period of mourning is divided in two. 
That is, if a person is going to wear mourning 
for a year, the first six months deep mourning 
is worn and the second six months, second 
mourning. First mourning is mostly black; 
second mourning black ana white. The old- 
time third mourning, lavender and gray, isn’t 
necessary now. When a person leaves off 
black and white, which is second mourning, 
they may wear any inconspicuous shade they 
fancy. 

Mourning for parents or a child is usually 
worn one year. And the same is true for a 
brother or sister. Nowadays, mourning is not 
[ 15 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


worn for any one outside of the immediate 
family. Of course, one is expected to wear 
black, or a very dull, inconspicuous costume to 
a funeral. 

First Mourning: Not all black materials 
are considered appropriate for deep mourning. 
The choice should be a dull woolen or silk. 
Woolens considered correct are serge, poplin, 
gabardine, tricotine, jersey and velour. Silks 
that may be worn for deep mourning are 
crepe de chine, Canton crepe, faille, pongee, 
chiffon and georgette. In cottons, one may 
choose oxford gingham, black linen, mull, 
organdie or swiss. Fancy trimmings are to 
be avoided. 

As a person in deep mourning does not at¬ 
tend formal social gatherings, only simple 
clothes suitable for home and street wear are 
needed. One may have a woolen suit and 
several crepe de chine, taffeta and georgette 
blouses or a dress fairly plain, but made in an 
approved and becoming style, and a top coat 
to wear with it. 

Even in deep mourning, narrow turn-back 
collars and cuffs of white are worn. These 
may be white crepe, but nowadays crepe is 
not worn as much as heretofore. Batiste, 
voile or organdie for the collar and cuffs are 
in equally good taste. These are usually 
held in place with dull black bar pins. Gold 
and platinum jewelry is not worn except the 
[ 16 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


wedding and engagement ring. A jet chain 
is sometimes worn. 

The correct mourning hat is small or med¬ 
ium in size. One ought to remember that 
there is no reason for it being unbecoming. 
Fancy trimmings are out of place on such a 
hat. Feathers are never used for mourning. 
Just a fold of the hat material or crepe is the 
most appropriate trimming for a first mourn¬ 
ing hat. Even in this case, the hat may have 
the underbrim faced with white. Either white 
crepe or white georgette is used for this 
purpose. 

If a widow chooses, she may 
wear a long veil. However, many 
women now feel they would rather 
dispense with it. When I say long 
veil, I do not mean extremely 
long. None of the veils are longer 
than two yards now. Such a veil 
is draped across the top of the 
crown of the hat. It is not worn 
over the face, except at the funeral. 
The veils are made of grenadine, 
crepe, georgette crepe, or net bor¬ 
dered with crepe. The borders 
are about three inches wide. It is 
a matter of taste whether or not 
a face veil is worn with the long 
Fig. (8) Only veil. No one but a widow wears a 
a widow ^ i on g ve il. The face veil for deep 
wears ve ii ° ng mourning is plain mesh and bor- 
[ 17 ] 




A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


dered with crepe, one and one-half inches 
wide. One may have the border of the face 
veil grosgrain ribbon if preferred. In fact, the 
crepe is not used on the veil unless the hat is 
trimmed with crepe. 

Mourning handkerchiefs no longer have a 
deep border of black. Just a very narrow 
black rolled edge is the approved style. 

If one is mourning a parent, a child or a 
sister or brother, more white is worn with the 
black. For instance, instead of just the white 
collar and cuffs, a dress may have a white vest. 

All white is considered just as deep mourn¬ 
ing as black. 

Second Mourning: No crepe is worn in 
second mourning, and more white is intro¬ 
duced. It is permissible to wear a white 
blouse with a black skirt or a black and white 
dress, as a figured foulard or a black dotted 
white swiss. White net often is used as 
trimming in second mourning. 

After second mourning, it is wise to choose 
subdued colors, such as taupe, dark blue and 
brown before wearing bright colors. 

HOW TO USE YOUR FASHION 
MAGAZINES 

Do you get full value out of your fashion 
magazines? Do they bring the style centers 
into your sewing room? Do they talk to you 
and tell you that sleeves are long, or three- 
[ 18 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 



Fig. (9) Compare the designs that suit your purpose and your 
type. It will facilitate your selection. 


quarter, or short, this season; that necks are 
oval, or boat shape, or perhaps square; that 
skirts are so long and so wide? Do they give 
[ 19 ] 
























A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


you a list of the dresses that you can wear, 
and those that are suited to Mrs. Somebody 
Else? 

Now don’t blame your fashion magazines 
if they are not doing all these things for you. 
The information is there. It’s just a case 
that you haven’t digested it. 

Study your magazines. 

It’s really a pleasant pastime for an odd 
fifteen minutes or so. First, take the question 
of sleeves. It isn’t necessary to read endless 
printed pages to find out what they are like, 
and what they are not like. Run through 
the pages and look at just sleeves . Make a 
mental note of what they are like. You can’t 
take in everything about all the styles at one 
time, you know. 

After you have mastered sleeves, study the 
neck line . Perhaps, you will find there are 
two outlines that are equally stylish. 

Then there is the question of the placing of 
the waistline. It needs watching. What it 
does one season it hardly ever repeats the 
next. Look through all your fashion maga¬ 
zines and make a study of just waistlines . 

The width and length of the skirt is another 
question that ought to be looked up. It’s 
helpful also to classify trimmings just by 
themselves. 

Once you have dissected the dresses, coats 
and suits, part for part, you will have a good 
[ 20 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


mental picture of the general lines of the style 
for the season. 

Knowing the styles is really a most im¬ 
portant step toward having “style sense.” 
Go back to our second rule in selecting a 
really stylish garment on Page 2. The dress 
must suit the season . 

Now try something which may prove a little 
more difficult. Classify the styles. Turn to the 
first page of the magazine and decide for what 
purpose and occasion each costume is intended. 
You may be surprised to find out that you 
haven’t been observing in times past. If you 
are in doubt regarding any of the pictures, 
refer to the rules of Clothes Etiquette. 

If you want to select a style for yourself, 
it’s a good plan to mark the designs that suit 
your purpose and that also will be becoming 
to your type. When you compare them, 
eliminating those that are not suitable for 
your purpose or your appearance, it will be 
an easy matter to make a choice. 

Here is where making your dress yourself 
is going to help out. You can adapt the style 
to your purpose or to suit your individuality. 
In fact, the placing of a waistline one inch 
lower, the shortening of a collar, or the length¬ 
ening of a tunic may be the difference between 
a becoming and an unbecoming frock. If you 
make your own clothes, you will have stylish 
[ 21 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


clothes, prettier clothes —clothes that suit your 
individuality . 

WHAT IS YOUR TYPE? 

Perhaps it’s an impertinent question but we 
are talking just friend to friend and I am go¬ 
ing to ask, “How old are you?” 

Or maybe I had better say, 

“How young are you?” 

In selecting clothes, you know, 
age is just as important to the 
slip of a girl as it is to the woman 
who is growing older. Sixty’s 
dress can be downright cruel to 
sweet sixteen. 

On the other hand, the too- 
young dress is the very thing 
that will add ten years to a 
woman’s looks. 

Decide your type and see which 
styles are best suited to you. 

Are you a slim young girl? 

rig. \iv) Kire- 

Are you a stout young girl? cian draperies 

Are you a young woman mM?g'JuI 

of medium build? t> r °fi le • 

Are you a stout younger woman? 

Are you short? 

Are you tall ? 

Are you thin ? 

Are you an older woman? 

[ 22 ] 





PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


If You Are a Slim Young Girl— Then 
simplicity is your biggest asset. If you are 
sixteen or in your early twenties, you are sure 
to look your prettiest in simply tailored suits 
and crisp dimity or 
batiste Buster Brown 
blouses. 

Suitability in your 
tricotine or serge dress 
is just the matter of a 
youthful style and 
enough but not too much 
trimming. 

A braid binding or a 
contrasting piping is far 
more effective than a 
showy beaded or em¬ 
broidered trimming. 

This doesn’t mean that 
you can’t indulge your 

basque dress with a bouffant fancy for frivolous things. 

shrt ' Ifs every girl's privilege 

to have endless pretty organdie , net and lace 
collar and cuffs sets . Now that you are going 
to sew, you know, you can make them for a 
very small cost. 

When it comes to your silk frock I am 
tempted to say taffeta—it is so becoming to 
the young girl. However, if satin or a crepe 
weave appeals to you more, have them by all 
means but be doubly careful that the style you 
[ 23 ] 




A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


select is youthful. Crepes and satins are both 
tricky. You dont want your dress to look as 
if you borrowed it from mother or Aunt Mabel. 

Of course, for evening, there is nothing like 
taffeta, taffeta and lace or taffeta and tulle. 
Here you may have the frock bouffant to your 
heart’s content and trimmed too. 

I wonder if you will mind my adding just 
a few don’ts. 

Don’t wear a quantity of imitation jewelry 
and spoil your pretty costume. Try just your 
wrist watch with your serge or tricotine and 
see if it doesn’t 4ook better. Remember too, 
that there’s nothing like a simple string of 
pearls to set off an evening frock. 

Dont overdo the styles. After all, clothes 
are just a frame for one’s personality. You 
want people to remember you; not that your 
skirt was short or long or tight or full. 

Don’t copy some one else’s clothes, unless 
they happen to be your age and your type. 
Miss a-hundred-and-sixty and Miss not-quite- 
a-hundred-and-five were never intended to be 
twins. 

Perhaps You Are One of the Stout 
Young Girls .—Of course you can’t have 
some of the things that slim young girls have— 
ruffles, puffings and frills for instance. How¬ 
ever there’s danger in swinging too far the 
other way. 


[ 24 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


Just because you are plump is no reason 
why you must wear “stout styles for older 
women” You can have youthful simplicity 
in straight lines and long lines. 

Dresses of one material and all 
one color are to be preferred to 
separate waists and skirts which 
cut you in two. Russian blouse 
styles and straight hanging dresses 
are usually becoming. Pay par¬ 
ticular attention to the belt. A 
narrow belt, placed at a slightly 
low waistline is better than a 
broad one placed high. 

If you wear a suit you will find a 
blouse that matches the skirt in 
color is more becoming than a 
decided contrast. There are many 
pretty blouses now that lap over 
the skirt, and give long lines. 
straight siihou- Those of wool jersey and crepe de 
*ing Silhouette for chine > finished with a V neck 
the stout young and detachable linen collar and 
gtrl cuffs are especially youthful. 

Perhaps you haven’t thought of it, but you 
can wear almost any pleated skirt except an 
accordion plaited one . The accordion plaits 
are bunchy, but the side or box-pleats really 
give graceful long lines. In a soft material 
or a summer dress, you might even chance a 
frill, if it isn’t too wide and runs up and down 
[ 25 ] 




A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


the side seams of the skirt. You see, placed 
lengthwise it, too, gives a long line. 

It almost goes without saying that cross¬ 
wise trimmings are taboo. Trimming can be 
put on to give length. 

Plain materials are less likely to make you 
look large than figured ones. Narrow stripes 
are permissible but never broad stripes or 
plaids. 

Soft materials are best but avoid a material 
that “cups” to the figure like wool jersey or 
tricolette. 

Probably, this sounds like a great many 
don’ts to you, but there are any number of 
pretty materials that you can safely choose. 
French serge, tricotine, tweed, crepe de chine, 
georgette, soft taffeta, cotton crepe, voile and 
batiste are examples. 

There are stout girls who wear capes well, 
but they are the tall stout girls. If you are 
just medium or short and plump, a coat that 
is belted trimly with a narrow belt will give 
you better lines. In any event , avoid a cape. 
It is almost the worst enemy the stout young 
girl has. 

The pockets on your coat ought to be incon¬ 
spicuous—never the large plastery patch poc¬ 
ket variety. You may have this to console 
you, that, anyway, slashed pockets, placed 
lengthwise, are smarter now. 

[ 26 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


The collar, too, ought never to be more than 
medium in size. Collars that border on the 
cape variety seem to add many inches in 
width. 

It is possible to add trimming to a coat that 
will give long lines. Rows of parallel machine 
stitching, lengthwise at the center back or 
sides will give a pleasing effect. 

When you choose a suit, pay particular 
attention to the length of the jacket. The 
bolero and waistline jacket are not for you. 
Hunt out the coat that is finger tip length or 
longer. A simple box coat with perhaps an 
inverted pleat at the center back to give added 
length, and the narrowest kind of a belt, 
you will find answers the requirements for a 
youthful look and a becoming line. 

All you have to do is to compare in your 
mind’s eye this type of coat with one that is 
fitted in body and flaring below the waistline 
to be convinced of the wisdom of straight lines. 

I want to add just a few more suggestions. 
The first is about the fit of your clothes. 

Don't skimp your clothes . A tight dress 
never makes a person look smaller. In fact, 
tightness is apt to accentuate the size of the 
bust, the bigness of the arms and the width 
of the thighs. Try a little fullness, it will do 
wonders in the way of hiding large hips. 

There is the question, too, of the length of 
your skirts. If you wear your skirts a little 
[ 27 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


bit longer than the slim girl, you will find 
they will give you added height. 

Even your hat can add to your height or take 
away from it. Perhaps, the best rule I can 
give you to follow is to avoid broad brims 
and shallow crowns. There is danger, too, 
in the mushroom brim, although a brim that 
is medium in size and only droops slightly 
is often very becoming. A turban or a round 
hat with a decidedly upward brim is also to 
be avoided. Even when you have eliminated 
all these, you will find that you have a wide 
selection among the hats that have medium 
brims and fairly high crowns. Try on your 
hat in front of a full length mirror. 



Or Are You a Young 
Woman of Medium 
Build?—I am thinking 
of the girls, say twenty- 
eight years old or in 
their early thirties, whose 
figures are beginning to 
round out a little more. 
If you are in that class, 
watch out and avoid that 
pinched in “waisty” look. 


What you want are 
young clothes , but they 
can be a trifle more 
sophisticated than the 

• l • i_ _ 


Fig. {13) The woman of 
medium build can wear almost 


°f girl in her Teens wears. 


You can break away from 
[ 28 ] 


any fashion. 




PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


utter simplicity and have loose panels and 
tunics and coat effects. 

But you want to be very careful about 
what you put under that pretty new frock. 
How about your corset? Is it making you 
look your very best? You know you can't 
go on wearing the same little girdle that you 
did when you were just a girl. 

Watch out for your hips. The too-light 
corset is a hip builder, you know. Perhaps 
you relax more now and don't exercise so 
much—that is, hip reducing exercise that you 
indulged in ten years ago. Take a good look 
at yourself in the glass. If your hips spread, 
it is time to change corsets. 

There are special corsets designed just for 
your type—for the young woman of medium 
build. They give a nice straight line in the 
back and hold in the hips. 

What you wear over your corset counts too. 
The new straight loose dresses look much 
better when worn over a straight slip than 
over a waistline petticoat which is apt is 
make a break at the waistline. 

When it comes to your outer apparel, you 
can have clothes with more trimming than 
your younger sister's. Instead of the girlish 
styles, look for those that have a little more 
dignity along with their style. It can be just 
as dashing a style, just as becoming a style, 
but you might as well admit the fact that it 
must be a trifle older. 

[ 29 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


You will find probably that a hat with a 
little trimming well placed is more becoming 
than a severely plain one. You will be wise to 
stick to small or medium size hats. As a mat¬ 
ter of fact, a hat is never becoming that extends 
beyond the width of the shoulders . It’s a good 
rule to remember. 

A blouse that has a square or round or V 
neck is apt to suit you better than one with a 
Buster Brown or flat Peter Pan collar. 

In dresses, keep to fairly straight lines. 
Leave the fitted basque and petite flaring skirt 
for your little sister—that is if you are think¬ 
ing about a street dress. 

There is an exception to the straight 
silhouette in your case and that is the dance 
frock. Here you have the choice of two types 
—the bodice topped dress with bouffant 
skirt or the straight frock that’s often made 
of spangles or beads. 

There is the matter of coats and suits, too! 
You can choose a dressier suit than the young 
girl without fear of over-doing it. Your suit 
may be soft velour, hand embroidered, and 
if it’s winter, banded with fur. The same 
rule holds true in your top coat. Unless 
it is for sports or the country, the fabric may 
be luxuriant, and trimmed. 

As to material, you are at the happy in- 
between age when you can have just about 
anything your heart desires. 

[ 30 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


Your summer cottons may be gay calico, sub¬ 
dued ginghams, plain linen, or a frilly organdie. 
In silks, your choice may be transparent 
georgette or a heavy Canton crepe. You 
don’t have to consider if wool jersey is too 
clinging, for you are still slim enough to wear 
it. It is true, too, that you may choose plaid 
or check if it happens to appeal to you. 

There are rules for trimming that even the 
perfectly developed woman is wise to follow. 
A great many lines that run around the figure 
are seldom pleasing . If you have seen a 
skirt that was braided at regular intervals 
from the lower edge to the waistline, you will 
know what I mean. It is tiresome. 

Never combine two colors in a dress in 
exactly equal proportions . The dress will be 
much prettier if one shade predominates or at 
least forms two-thirds of the dress. 

A word about jewelry goes right along 
with trimmings. If your dress is elaborately 
trimmed , don't add ornaments in the way of 
jewelry. One will spoil the other. If you 
are planning to wear a pendant or colorful 
placque on a silk cord, choose a plain style 
for your dress. A bright red or jade placque 
hanging on the front of a dark blue or black 
dress is really all the trimming it needs. 
Sometimes, too, just a bright bar pin will 
add the right spot of color. 

[ 31 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 



Would You Be Classed as a Stout 
Younger Woman? —Perhaps you, too, are 
in your twenties or early thirties but are frankly 
stout and have oh, so much difficulty finding 
suitable clothes—clothes that don’t make you 
look like a dowager. You will have to take 
some of the advice that I gave 
the stout young girl. 

Watch out for the fit . Don’t 
fit your clothes too much. An 
easy fit, soft folds and a little 
fullness will do more than any¬ 
thing else in the world to give 
Fig. (14) Cross- you the youthful look. 

wise lines make . . . 

even a vase look The waistline is especially lm- 

shorter and wider. portant# Ease it up a Let 

out your inside grosgrain dress belt an inch 
or so and get a straight silhouette. 

Then, it is possible you know, to make 
yourself look taller and slighter than you 
really are. It’s just the same sort of a trick 
that is shown in Figs. (14) and (15). Of course, 
the vase with the up and down lines looks the 
taller. That’s what you want to do with 
your clothes. Keep the lines running up and 
down . I am thinking of tunics and panels 
and coat dresses that give height to the figure. 

However, up and down lines won’t do every¬ 
thing. There’s broad stripes, for instance, 
the contrast in color makes you conspicuous 
and adds to your size. A decided contrast 
[ 32 ] 








PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


in the color of two fabrics in one dress will do 
practically the same thing. 

The little Fig. (14) speaks for itself— avoid 
crosswise lines if you value a graceful appear - 
ance . Separate waists and skirts of different 
colors will never make you look slimmer. A 
three-piece suit which consists of a one-piece 
dress and coat is the admirable solution of 
the suit problem. 

If you wear a blouse at all, have it in a color 
that matches the skirt and in a style that 
laps over the skirt to avoid the break at the 
waistline. Of course, you have to have a 
belt, but make it a narrow one and always 
of material the same color of the dress. In 
fact, the belt is more becoming 
if you have it of goods the same 
as the dress. 

Your arms are apt to look larger 
in transparent sleeves. If your 
dress is chiffon, try making your 
. sleeves double of the goods. 

You will find that set-in sleeves Figm (/5) p erpen _ 
are not only more comfortable dicuiar lines give 
but will look better than kimono helght t0 an 0 Ject ' 
sleeves. Long, close-fitting sleeves are more 
becoming than short or flaring sleeves. 

The V-neck outline gives the longest lines 
but there are some oval necks that do not 
broaden the figure greatly. Square necks are 
not so good, neither are round necks nor the 
straight across, boat-shaped outline. 

[ 33 ] 






A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


Probably, you have 
learned by experience 
that the skirt of medium 
proportions looks far 
better than a narrow or 
extremely flaring one, 
regardless of the ultra 
style of the particular 
season. 

There is your hat, too! 
It’s another part of your 
costume that comes 
under the rule of medi¬ 
um. A large hat will 
make you look shorter 
and an extremely small 
hat will emphasize the 
width of your figure. 

I am going to tell you the materials not to 
wear—stiff goods , wiry goods , goods that cling y 
bulky goods or conspicuously patterned or 
brightly colored fabrics . 

After all, they are not much of a tempta¬ 
tion when you think how attractive the 
crepe silks are and that most desirable woolens 
such as velour, serge, broadcloth and tricotine 
are soft, to say nothing of cottons such as 
crepe, voile and gingham tissue. 

Even in cottons, it is safest to choose a 
plain color in preference to a patterned goods. 
Sometime try a plain blue or brown voile 
and see what slim lines it gives you. 




PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


If You Are Short .—Which class of short 
women do you belong to, short and slim or 
short and stout or just medium? 

If you are short and slim , dressing becom¬ 
ingly ought not to be a very difficult proposi¬ 
tion. 

There are just two or three things I would 
like to put the danger mark on. One of them 
is dressing your hair high. If you build it up 
into an exaggerated coiffure, you will look 
top heavy and call attention to your lack of 
height. 

You have much the same problem with 
your hat—wings that shoot up in the air, 
bows that are placed high, egrets standing 
ht are almost never becoming to the 



small woman. 

I advise studying the height of the heels 
of your shoes, too. A very high heel—higher 
than other women are wearing—will make 
people think that you are trying to make 
yourself look taller than you are. 

Make the most of your appearance—your 
height—as it is. You know you can make 
yourself look taller without anyone suspecting 
it by choosing clothes that have long lines . 
However, if you are short and slim, your 
charm is in the very fact that you are small 
and petite and you can wear almost any style 
that fashion dictates, avoiding an elaboration 
of drapery on a skirt, or a voluminous wrap 
or extremely large figured materials. 


[35] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


Some of the styles which you 
can wear well are what are 
called sport’s clothes: the pretty 
sweaters, plaited skirts, and 
dainty hand-made blouses. 
Dresses that have a low 
bloused-over waist are also 
becoming to the slim, short 
woman. 

If you belong to that petite 
girlish type, try the basque 
type of dress with a full skirt, 
or a fitted coat with a ripple 
peplum. 

You may have ruffles and 
F ig.U7) if you are f r ill s to your heart’s content, 

short , choose either a , 1 • c 

short or a three-quarter DUt aVOlQ an elaboration OI 

coat—never one that drapery that may seem to 

cuts you just in two. • i i tvt 

weight you down. JNow, 
haven’t you seen a dainty little woman 
whom you felt downright sorry for because 
her clothes seemed such a load to carry 
around. 



And now you women who are short and 
stout !—Your problem is almost identical to 
the taller stout woman’s problem. Pick out 
the styles that have long lines. If you wear 
a tunic it ought to be a long one. 

Keep your waistline as low as possible, 
it will give you a more graceful appearance 
than a bunchy short waist. 

[ 36 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


Don’t wear a suit coat that cuts you right 
in two. A hip-length coat or a three-quarter 
coat is far more becoming. 

A belted top coat is to be preferred to a 
bulky wrap or cape. 

If you wear a fur, choose a small neck* 
piece and have a short-haired pelt such as 
mole, beaver or seal. 

Study yourself as a whole and balance your 
costume. Don’t trust a shoulder length or a 
waistline mirror. A hat may be becoming to 
your face, but be top heavy for your body. 
It takes a full-length mirror to make us see 
ourselves as others see us. 

There is the question of the length of skirt! 
You can’t make a rule of so many inches 
from the floor that will apply to everyone. 
It may be just above the shoe tops for the 
tall woman, but half-way to the knees of a 
short woman. 

Standing on a chair and looking in a small 
mirror doesn’t tell much either. A cut-off 
view of feet, ankles and skirt may look very 
graceful, and yet the length of skirt from 
bottom to waistline may be very awkward. 

There is danger in the too-short skirt for the 
short woman. One short woman expressed 
the idea concisely herself, when she said, 
“She didn’t want her skirt to look like a 
ruffle.” It’s a fact, that often an inch on 
[ 37 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


the length of your skirt will seem to add an 
inch to your height. 

There is one point which you must bear in 
mind when looking at special designs for 
stout women—that the massive type of big 
stout women require different styles than you do . 
They can wear designs that are cut up in a 
great many pieces—that is, have a great 
many up and down lines in them. On the 
other hand, you will look much better in a 
simpler type of dress, one perhaps that has 
just a panel or a single line of trimming down 
each side of the front. For you, the dress of 
many pieces is in the same class as a figured 
dress. 

It’s a mistake to think that your clothes 
must be tight. It’s not the stylish conception 
any more. In soft materials, a little fullness 
in a skirt is becoming. A short stout woman 
can wear a straight hanging dress, too, if the 
belt is narrow and slants down in the front. 

As a rule , V necks are the most becoming . 
The longer the V, the better. You know a 
deep V gives a chance for the becoming touch 
of white. 

Just mark kimono sleeves taboo, for they 
are apt to make a person look hunched in the 
back and very, very wide. Full length , set-in , 
close-fitting sleeves will make your arms look 
slimmer . 


[38] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


If you are short and stout, look up the 
color suggestions on page 64. 

Or maybe you are short and just medium .— 
I am going to ask you to read what I told the 
short, slim woman about her coiffure, her hat 
and the heels of her shoes. 

You ought to watch out for long lines in 
clothes and avoid cut-off cross lines. 

Drapery is not for you either. 

And use frills sparingly on your blouse. 

There is the question of trimming, too. 
An elaborate beaded or embroidered all-over 
design is just as bad as a figured goods. 

Make simplicity the keynote of your ward¬ 
robe . Fancy clothes will take away from your 
height and your individuality, too. Plain 
good style clothes have a dignity and smart¬ 
ness which is your special privilege. 

Starting in with dresses, straight hanging 
dresses will give you good lines, especially 
if the trimming runs up and down. You 
can wear over-blouse styles, too, and coat 
dresses. 

Suit coats ought to be finger-tip length or 
longer. You can’t afford to chance a line 
that cuts you right in two. Coats with 
irregular lower edges are apt to be more 
becoming than straight-around coats. Coats 
that are slightly fitted or on the box order, 
give longer lines than those that are close- 
fitting and have a ripple peplum. 

[391 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


Avoid the too-short skirt and the skirt that 
is very full. They will both make you look 
shorter. 

Top coats that have set-in sleeves and are 
belted at a low waistline with a narrow belt 
are far more becoming than a voluminous 
wrap or flaring unbelted coat. 

Your hat is an important item. You are 
one of the women who can wear a small hat 
unless your face is round. Medium hats, too, 
will become you. Avoid a shallow crown hat . 
A hat with a medium high crown is better. 
A decided mushroom brim is another style 
which makes a person look shorter. On the 
other hand, a hat with an off-the-face brim 
or with the brim rolled on one side gives 
height. 

If You Are Tall .—There is a difference in 
being tall and too tall. We know that Fashion 
designs for the tall girl or woman. She prac¬ 
tically hasn’t any clothes worries at all as far 
as the lines of the garment are concerned. 

However, if you are too tall, I think I can 
give you a few helpful suggestions. First of 
all, how do you carry yourself? Don’t on any 
account stoop, as if you were apologizing for 
being as tall as you are. To carry your clothes 
well you must stand up straight. 

Of course you don’t want to wear panels or 
stripes that emphasize your height—on the 
other hand, it’s a mistake to make a dress 
[ 40 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


with so many crosswise lines that look like a 
crosswise striped barber’s pole. 

Draperies are your share of the fashions 
that many other women cannot wear. Tunics, 
loose panels and coat effect are all good. 

Avoid mannishly tailored clothes, they will 
make you seem larger than you really are. 
Don’t be afraid to indulge in pretty clothes— 
blouses with frills and dainty collars. 

Suppose we talk just about necklines. 
Have you ever happened to think that the 
neckline of a dress can make you look taller 
than you really are? I am thinking of those 
long V neck lines and the panel front effects 
that so many of the coat dresses have. 

If you are wise you will leave these for your 
short plump little cousin. She needs them 
and you don’t. 

You can indulge in some of the ultra fashions 
—the boat and almond shaped neck that 
ovals slightly from shoulder to shoulder or the 
straight across Grecian neck line which many 
shorter women complain of as “ trying.” 
Of course, there are square and oval necks, 
too, that will become you. Bertha effects, 
when they are in style, are a neck finish 
you may indulge in. 

You may have your choice of either a 
kimono or set-in sleeve. A long, very close- 
fitting sleeve will make your arms seem long. 
Fancy sleeves will probably be more becoming. 

[ 41 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


I am going to put cascaded folds in a 
paragraph all by themselves. They are such 
a friend to the tall woman. Cascaded folds 
on a skirt, or a rippling cascaded fold from the 
shoulder to the hem, seem to be planned 
especially for the tall woman. 

The tall woman’s suit coat may ripple and 
flare. It may have a bulky collar, too, and 
plastrons of embroidery or large buttons for 
trimming. 

And you women who are tall , capes are made 
for you. Evening wraps that are bulky and 
drape will become you. If you happen to 
like an unbelted, rippling back, top coat, you 
can wear it well, too. 

In choosing a fur, you will do well to select 
a long-haired pelt. Remember that long¬ 
haired pelts are one of your special privileges, 
for only tall women can wear them well. Of 
course, short-haired pelts if made in a suitable 
style are often very becoming to a tall woman. 
Do not select so small a piece that it looks 
skimpy. You will look better in a broad 
scarf or a cape effect. 

I have just a few cautions to add. 

Perhaps you are tempted to flatten out 
your hair and wear low-crowned hats and 
flat-heeled shoes just to make yourself look a 
little shorter. Well, it really doesn’t accom¬ 
plish that result. It’s far better to dress your 
hair becomingly, wear a hat that is just right 
[ 42 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


according to the prevailing mode and shoes 
that have a good-looking medium heel. 

If You Are Thin .—I don’t 
mean slim. I am thinking of 
the women who describe them¬ 
selves as painfully thin. Some 
people are naturally thin and 
have to face their clothes prob¬ 
lem just the same as the stout 
woman has to face hers. You 
can’t always cover yourself up 
to your chin, down to wrist 
and down to heels. Fashion 
won’t let you do that every 
season. However, you can adapt 
the fashions. 

Suppose we consider fabrics 
Fig. (IS) Them* first- Has it occurred to you 
woman will find that crisp, hard-finished fabrics 
fniis are her,friends. are tI yj n g? Take organdie, for 

instance. It will accentuate your thinness. 
On the other hand mull, or batiste, or even 
voile will give a soft effect that is very becom¬ 
ing. 

Taffeta is another material you want to 
avoid. Crepe silks or charmeuse are really 
better. 

It’s the same with woolen. It’s my advice 
to pass right by the mohair and poplin 
counter and purchase instead velour, French 
serge or wool jersey. 

[431 




A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


What you want in material is not a texture 
that is so harsh that it flares away in an abrupt 
line from figure , but a pliant weave which will 
fall into soft graceful folds . But avoid the 
clinging line that is another danger point. 

It’s a compliment to be called slim but 
never slinky. Don’t be tempted to eliminate 
your petticoat because your top skirt is a 
heavy weave. A frilly camisole too, will 
make your silk frock and your sheer blouse 
set better. 

High collars, of course, are very becoming 
but they are not always in style. If you are 
wearing a low neck, try adding a fold of 
cream color or white chiffon, batiste or net 
beyond the edge of the dress. It will soften 
the effect. You will also find neck frills or 
jabots very becoming. 

On the other hand, a collarless neckline is 
severe. If the bones show a little in your 
neck, it will make the shadows under them 
seem deeper. If you are making a tailored 
cloth or silk dress, hunt out the styles with 
vest fronts. They give you a chance to add 
the becoming frill or two of net, batiste or 
lace. 

One of the very best styles for the thin woman 
is a surplice waist . 

Always see to it that there is a fullness at 
the waistline of your skirt. 

[ 44 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


You can wear tunics and loose panels and 
draperies. 

If you are thin and also young and the 
petite type , then ruffles are one of your privi¬ 
leges, too. There are many other nice things 
which I can tell you. Since you are thin, 
even if you are short, you can wear a cape 
gracefully. Bulky top coats too, will become 
you. Even a ripple is not out of the way on 
your tailored suit. If the coat has a flaring 
peplum or a little drapery, so much the 
better. 

In hats you want to look for softness. If 
your face is thin, avoid the hat with sharp 
angles,—tricorns and hats that point out at 
the sides. The brim that droops a little will 
probably be more becoming. Handmade 
draped hats are excellent. 

Avoid transparent blouses or dresses—es¬ 
pecially in kimono styles. Td advise, too, a 
skirt that is just as long as fashion permits. 

After all, no matter what the latest fad is, 
the stylish thing to do is to dress becomingly. 
If you want to use a transparent material 
and perhaps in a kimono style sleeve, try 
making the sleeves of two thicknesses of the 
goods. This is often done. The same holds 
true of lace. If you are using lace for a waist 
or sleeves, line it with chiffon. Even skirt 
draperies of lace will seem softer if they are 
lined with chiffon. 


[45] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 



Are You an Older Woman ? 

—Whether you are growing older, 
from forty or fifty or sixty, there 
are certain changes in your figure. 
Perhaps you are growing stouter, 
either all over or through your 
bust or hips and abdomen. Per¬ 
haps your chest has flattened. 
You may not be quite so erect. 

You will have to suit your 
clothes to your new figure. They 
can be just as charming but they 
will have to be different. 

What you want are clothes that 
will do kindly things —soften the 
Fig {19) For the lines of your figure. There are 
™tfJe h0 is be- only a very few older women who 
coming softness in can wear severely tailored styles 
surphce styles. we u are t he broad-chested, 

straight-backed older women who always 
stand erect. As a general rule the middle- 
aged, or older woman, looks better in a one- 
piece dress or a semi-tailored suit that has a 
little trimming. 

Three-piece suits, having a dress and suit 
coat are excellent. Or, if you make a blouse 
to match the color of your suit coat, and trim 
the blouse with a little suit material, it will 
look just like a dress. 

Another way of making a suit into a one- 
piece dress is to cut the skirt off at the hips 
and attach it to a silk overblouse of a match- 
[ 46 ] 




PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


ing shade. When worn with cloth belt, it 
makes a very good looking, straight hanging 
dress for the older woman. 

Surplice waists are one of the becoming 
styles you may choose. Vests and long collars 
are also good. Avoid the very plain skirt. 
Tunic, panel and draped styles are better. 

Always have a touch of white at the neck. 
It’s far more becoming than a dark color next 
to the skin. Don’t think that you have to 
have all your dresses high neck style—make 
some of them with pretty low V necks or the 
U-shaped neck outline and wear them with 
white guimpes that have high collars. 

Another way of making the neck look trim 
with a low neck dress is to wear an inch wide 
piece of black velvet around the neck. Make 
the ribbon to fit the neck and fasten it with 
snaps in the back or with small gold pins. 

Coats of soft velour made with long shawl 
collar or r.evers and finished with a narrow 
belt are usually becoming to the mature 
woman. The older woman will do well to 
avoid the extreme fads of fashion , for to be 
really becoming , her clothes must have a certain 
dignity. 

There is the question of the length of the 
skirt. Consult a full length peer glass when 
you are having the hem of your skirt turned. 
You will find a long skirt more graceful than 
a short one. It is impossible to give a general 
[ 47 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


rule for the length of skirt that will become 
every older women, but five inches from the 
floor usually is about right. 

The width of the skirt is another point 
where the older woman must use her own 
good judgment, regardless of what is decreed 
by some French couturiere. A slip of a girl, 
who really hasn’t very much figure, can wear 
an extremely tight skirt, but when you are 
older and have hips to consider, such a skirt 
is quite out of the question. However, there 
is no need to go to the other extreme and wear 
old-fashioned clothes. It’s a fact that con¬ 
servative, medium width skirts are in style 
season in and season out. 

I might add a word about comfort, too. 
Wear comfortable clothes. No woman looks 
her best if her corsets are digging into her 
side and her collar chocking her, or her skirt 
whipping around her ankles every time she 
steps. Clothes you enjoy wearing are usually 
becoming. 

This little rule applies to shoes as well as to 
dresses, coats and suits. Nine out of every 
ten older women look better in a comfortable 
straight heeled shoe or slipper, than they do 
in high French heels. Very high heels are 
apt to throw the body forward and out of its 
natural graceful poise. Naturally, an older 
woman tires easier and slumps into this unbe¬ 
coming posture sooner than a young girl. 
If you want to dress for an enduring smartness 
[ 48 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


that will last a whole afternoon or a whole 
day , wear comfortable clothes. 

Pay particular attention to the head size of 
your next hat. Nothing spoils a woman’s 
appearance quicker than a hat that is so large 
that it slips down over the ears or the too- 
small hat that rides perilously on the top of 
the head or slips rakishly over one ear. As 
a general rule, the older woman looks well 
in a hat that sits squarely on the head. 
Draped handmade hats are to be preferred 
to the severity of a blocked hat. The brim¬ 
less hat is too hard for the older woman. A 
hat that shades the face a little is more 
becoming. 


BECOMING COLORS 

For the Blonde. 

For the Brunette. 

For the blue-eyed girl with brown hair. 

For the auburn haired girl. 

For the woman with gray hair. 

If your complexion is sallow. 

If your complexion is florid. 

If you are stout. 

For the Blonde .—Match up your eyes if 
you want a really becoming color scheme. 
Haven’t you always heard that blue belongs 
to blondes? That’s because blondes usually 
have blue eyes. 

[ 49 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 



Fig. {20) Match your eyes , if you want a becom¬ 
ing color scheme. 


You know, when an artist is studying 
color composition he learns that a repetition 
of a different tone of the same color intensifies 
it. So if your eyes are dark blue and you 
wear a pretty gray blue or peacock blue 
watch ribbon, for instance, with your navy 
blue dress, your eyes will seem bleur and 
more sparkling. 

If you are very fair and have a clear skin 
and color, black will also become you. Peo¬ 
ple with sallow complexions ought to avoid 
black, for it absorbs all light and doesn’t give 
a pretty reflected glow to help out pale skin. 

Of course, the blonde can wear pastel 
shades, almost any of them—pale blue, lav- 
[ 50 ] 






PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


ender, shell pink or light green. However, you 
will be wise to avoid yellow tones as they 
give too little contrast. 

You must remember the importance of 
contrast in your cloth dress or suit. It is a 
great mistake for a blonde to wear a sand 
colored suit or dress. If your hair is very 
light, dark shades will tone it and make it 
seem even more yellow. For street wear 
make your choice among the dark blues, 
dark browns, dark greens or black. Have a 
dash of color in the trimming—some becoming 
light shade. A soft silvery blue, for instance, 
on navy blue or brown is better for the blonde 
than the introduction of a vivid shade such 
as scarlet on navy or orange on brown. Leave 
these vivid contrasts for the brunette. 

Another way of working up a becoming 
color scheme for a suit or top coat is to have 
the suit or coat dark blue and the lining 
hydrangea blue. It gives such a pleasing 
note of color when you open the coat. 

In cotton frocks lavender or the medium 
and light shades of blue and green are the 
wisest choice for the blonde. 

For evening the pastel colors, except yellow, 
are all good. White is also becoming to a 
blonde if it is combined with a touch of light 
color, such as blue. 

For the Brunette .—As blue is the color for 
blondes, so brown is the color for brunettes, 
[ 51 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 



ranging right 
through to orange 
and the copper 
shades. The one 
exception to this 
rule is the brunette 
with blue eyes. If 
you have dark hair 
and blue eyes prob¬ 
ably you will find 
that blue becomes 
you. 

Red is another 
shade that bru¬ 
nettes and only 
brunettes can wear 
successfully. 

There are light shades a brunette looks well 
in but they must be more intense than the 
blonde wears. Here are some evening shades 
for the brunettes—greenish blue, on the 
turquoise order, apricot, peach, orange, lav¬ 
ender and flame. 

Of course, dark brown is one of the best 
street shades for the brunette. However, it 
is by no means the only one. Brickish reds 
and. the wine shades, which are now per¬ 
missible as far as good style is concerned for 
the street, certainly help a brunette to look 
her best. 

A brunette can also wear navy blue 
if she remembers to introduce one of her 
[ 52 ] 


Fig. (21) Browns are for 
brunettes. 

















PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


special secondary colors such as tan or 
orange. 

If your hair is black, or a very dark brown, 
hunt out the reds in the cottons for your 
summer frocks. There are lovely red checked 
ginghams, swisses and plain organdies. 
Cottons come in good looking brown tones 
too, which you can wear well. If you want 
something lighter, try a yellow or apricot 
organdie. Lavender is often becoming to 
the brunette, especially the lavenders that 
have a good deal of pink in them. You know 
there is a difference—some lavenders have 
more blue and some more pink. Remember 
that the blue lavenders belong to the blonde. 

Black is not as apt to become a brunette 
as. it is a blonde. However, if you have a 
very clear skin and lots of color you can 
probably wear it. It’s a good idea to relieve 
it with a vivid touch of color, such as jade 
green or cerise. For instance, a black lace 
evening gown ought to have a sash of either 
shade. 

The same rule holds true in wearing white. 
Use a vivid color to relieve it. You need more 
intense colors than the blonde to bring out the 
coloring in your hair and eyes . Although 
the reddish purples, which are sometimes 
called the fuchsia colorings, are rather trying, 
they are becoming to some brunettes. 

For the Blue Eyed Girl with Brown 
Hair .—You are the in-between girl. Proba- 
[ 53 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 



Fig. {22) There are colors which will help to 
bring out the pretty lights in your hair. 


bly if you were named you would be called a 
“blondette.” Your coloring permits you to 
wear most the shades that a blonde wears and 
you can also have some of the brunette’s 
colors. 

Of course, with blue eyes, blue in all its 
shades will be sure to become you. Since your 
hair is brown, dark brown shades ought to 
look well on you. 

Perhaps you can carry out this little 
scheme and have both the coloring of your 
eyes and hair. With a brown suit and a 
white blouse try a narrow watch ribbon or 
neck bow of double-faced ribbon—brown on 
one side and gray blue on the other. 

[ 54 ] 






PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


You really have a wider choice in colors 
than either the real blonde or the real brunette. 
Take your street dresses and suits for instance. 
Since your hair is fairly dark, you can wear 
the light tan which is taboo for the yellow 
haired girl. On the other hand, for evening, 
you can wear a pastel shade if it happens to 
take your fancy. 

But to go back to street clothes, you have 
your choice of tan, brown, dark blue or any 
of the pretty reds that happen to be worn. 
If you are blessed with a good color and a 
fair skin, then you can wear a light gray. 
If your skin is sallow, taupe, which is gray 
with a little brown in it, will be more becom¬ 
ing. Whether or not you can wear black 
depends on your skin. If you have a clear 
skin, you will probably look well in black. 

Where your costume is either white or 
black, try to introduce a note of color, such 
as hydrangea or peacock blue. It will make 
your eyes seem prettier, you know. 

In cottons, the soft gray blues will probably 
be your wisest choice. Remember that you 
can wear the bluish lavenders too, and 
yellow will intensify the lights in your hair 
and not detract from it. 

Light shades for evening will probably suit 
you better than vivid shades. Lavender, 
light blue, light green or yellow are all good. 

You will find it a good rule not to wear the 
too vivid shades. It takes a real brunette 
[ 55 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


to carry off a whole gown of flame color or 
peacock blue. With your coloring, you can¬ 
not stand more than a touch of these colors 
in the trimming. On the other hand, the 
colorings of your hair, eyes and skin are too 
intense for the very palest of pastel shades. 
You will have to study the degree of color 
that you choose. 

You need more intense shades than the blonde , 
but not as vivid as the brunette can wear . 

If Your Hair is Auburn .—What you need 
is contrast, but not a vivid contrast. Let 
your pretty hair be the interesting spot of 
color. 

Black will do wonders in bringing out the 
beauty of auburn hair. 

If your eyes are blue, you will wear dark 
navy blue well. However, avoid the light 
or vivid shades of blue. Being what is called 
a complementary color to red, they intensify 
it. A vivid blue will make your hair seem 
a more brilliant shade and you don’t want 
that. 

There are many neutral shades for street 
wear that will become you among the grays 
and taupes. 

A very dark greenish brown is also good, 
but a reddish brown is seldom becoming. 
It’s too near your own colorings. Of course, 
the same holds true of red. Green, except, 
the very darkest shades, come under the rule 
of too great a contrast. 

[ 56 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


The auburn haired woman may safely 
choose any of the darker shades of blue for 
her cotton frocks. There are lovely grays, 
too, in gingham, organdie, linen and batiste 
that she will look well in. Tan if it isn’t too 
red, is becoming. The auburn haired woman 
always looks well in white. If there is any 
color introduced in the white frock for day¬ 
time wear, it must be subdued, as for instance, 
a cluster of silk flowers or fruit in tones of 
dull gray blue and lavender on a white frock. 

Some auburn-haired women wear certain 
shades of blue lavender well but you want to 
select it carefully. Under no circumstances 
wear a red lavender. You know it varies. 

Even for evening the auburn-haired woman 
is wise to select a black gown—black lace or 
net—or if you are very young, black taffeta. 

All white, of course, is always becoming 
or you may have a vivid contrast with it for 
evening as a torquoise blue or a jade green 
girdle of ribbon or tulle. Such decided con¬ 
trasting colors can be used for evening if 
they are not placed too near to the hair. 

There are lovely gowns, too, of gold lace 
and gold cloth and brocade which are becom¬ 
ing to a woman with auburn hair. 

If You Have Gray Hair .—Certainly if 
your hair is gray, you ought to have no diffi¬ 
culty finding pretty clothes. There are so 
many, many lovely shades that seem to be 
intended for the woman with gray hair. 

[ 57 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


There used to be a time when 
a woman grew a little older that 
she gave up all the pretty colors 
and wore only gray and black. 
But they don’t do that any more. 

Did you know that a veiy light 
and soft shade of pink is just 
about the most becoming color 
you can wear? You might have 
a nice little informal dinner dress 
of pink chiffon or a pink silk 
skirt with a matching color 
chiffon blouse. Such a skirt and 
blouse topped with a becoming 
sweater, perhaps of light gray 
Fig. {23) The wool, make a smart costume for 
g woman ai wUi out >°f-doors in the summer. 
do well to re - Blue, orchid and lavender 

Timing shades go prettily with gray 
touch of white hair, too. There are also soft 
at the throat. s h ac j es Q f light blue which are 
becoming. But don’t use very much of the 
blue. Just an edge of gray blue and silver 
ribbon showing beyond the neck edge of a 
navy blue frock will tone it attractively. 

For street wear you have quite a variety 
from which to choose. Navy blue, gray, 
henna and neutral shades such as taupe. 

If your skin is clear and you have good color 
you can wear black well. 

In cottons, there are lovely flower sprigged 
dimities in gray and blue tones which are 
[581 




PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


becoming to an older woman. Gray swiss 
dotted in blue is another good choice for the 
gray haired woman. Black and white effects 
too in voile, dimity, and swiss are considered 
very smart. 

For evening, an older woman may choose 
a pastel shade of gray blue or lavender and 
be dressed in perfect taste. Gray chiffon 
over a silvery blue chiffon makes an exquisite 
dinner dress. Brocades come in lovely shades 
of gray blue and lavender too, for evening. 
As I said before, you can wear black if your 
skin is clear, and of course, black is always 
nice for evening. The older women’s evening 
gown, black and silver is a dignified com¬ 
bination. 

If Your Complexion is Sallow .—As I 

said before avoid black. It absorbs all color 
and doesn’t give a reflected glow to help out a 
pale skin. 

Neither is it a good plan to wear brown or 
yellow tones. As they intensify the yellow 
tinge of the skin. 

It will probably surprise you to know that 
you can wear a peach shade which has pink 
and yellow in it and your skin will look 
whiter. It’s just a curious little fact about 
color. If you place a color that has two shades 
in it along side of one of the shades the two like 
shades will seem to disappear . 

It is true that colors do very definite 
things. Colors which are opposite each other 
[ 59 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


on the color wheel , see Fig . (26 ), 
intensify each other . 

It’s just like the law of 
gravity—a fact we have to 
remember and accept. This 
explains why you can’t wear 
blue purple. It’s another color 
that will intensify the yellow 
tinge in your skin. 

I am going to asK you to 
look at the color wheel, Fig. 

( 26 ). You will see 
that blue purple 
and yellow are 
opposite each other. 
Read the colors 
that are opposite 
each other. You 
will probably recall 
naving seen some 
^of the opposite 
colors together, and 
that they did in¬ 
tensify each other. 
Neutral tones are your safest choice. A 
taupe dress with the vest edged with the 
tiniest bit of old rose and gold ribbon ought to 
look well or you might have a gray dress with 
a touch of henna. Probably an all henna dress 
would prove very becoming. Remember the 
importance of a touch of cream color or white 
at the neck . 



Fig. {24) A red umbrella will 
do wonders in the way of lighten¬ 
ing up a sallow complexion. 


[ 60 ] 





PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


Just about the best rule a woman with a 
sallow complexion can follow is to look for 
warm rosy tints. If you choose brown, 
hunt out a warm reddish brown. A greenish 
brown is to be avoided. A navy blue that 
is a red blue, not a greenish blue, will become 
you if you touch it up with a little rose 
trimming—perhaps it will only be a placque 
enameled in rose, worn on a silk cord. Rose 
or henna wool embroidery is an effective way, 
too, of introducing the needed color. 

For a dinner dress or evening dress, you 
will do well to make your choice a subdued 
rose shade as gray or taupe chiffon over rose 
chiffon. Another way of bringing in the rose 
tint in such a frock is to bead a gray, a navy 
blue, or a taupe chiffon with rose crystal 
beads. 

When you are choosing accessories to go 
with your street clothes, remember that a 
rose tint will seem to bring a becoming glow 
to your cheeks. Perhaps you can wear a 
creamy old rose wool scarf with your tailored 
suit. Or you may be able to tuck a rose- 
colored flower on the brim of your hat. Even 
a rose colored pocket handkerchief will help 
out a drab costume. 

Another item which has its importance so 
far as color is concerned is your umbrella. 
I hope it isn’t green. Really there is nothing 
so trying for the woman with a sallow com¬ 
plexion as a green umbrella. It even robs 
[ 61 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


a rosy cheek of all its color. Navy blue 
isn’t especially good, either. And black 
never adds to your appearance. If you want 
to look your very best in the rain, choose a red 
umbrella, or a reddish brown one. 

If Your Complexion is Florid. —Some¬ 
times I think the woman with a florid com¬ 
plexion has just about the most difficult prob¬ 
lem in selecting becoming clothes. Perhaps 
you have had the experience of selecting a 
frock and trying it on when your face wasn’t 
flushed, and it was becoming, and when you 
wear it your face flushes up, and it isn’t 
becoming. 

You can’t trust your complexion, so you 
will have to go more by rule. 

No doubt you already know that you 
can’t wear red—that red reflects red in your 
face. 

It may be too that you have learned from 
bitter experience that blue green makes your 
face more florid. Does it puzzle you? If you 
will look at the color wheel on page 67 you 
will find it’s opposite red and therefore 
what is called a complementary color. Not 
because we know the reason why, but because 
we have to accept the fact —complementary 
colors intensify each other . 

However, if you wear purple, it will lessen 
the color of the skin for purple is made up of 
red and blue. The two like shades will 
[ 62 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


disappear. I have explained the reason for 
this in my suggestions for a Sallow Com¬ 
plexion. 

Black is excellent for you for it absorbs 
all light and doesn't reflect color in your 
face. As a matter of tact, it will seem to 
take away some of the color from your face. 
The same is true of very dark shades of 
brown and green as they absorb nearly all 
color. 

The neutral shades such as taupe, dull gray, 
blue, and gray lavender, you can wear, as 
the gray tones them down. 

In neck wear, you will find a cream color 
more becoming than dead white, which offers 
such a decided contrast to your skin. I 
might add that all white is not as becoming 
to the woman with a florid complexion as 
shades which neutralize the color in her face. 

Your very wisest choice in an evening gown 
will be black. Don't be tempted to relieve 
it with a brilliant dash of color. It will prove 
far more becoming combined with a little 
cloth of silver or gold, or a few subdued 
flowers in dull blue and lavender tones. 

I want to add a bit of caution about your 
umbrella. Don't be tempted to buy a red 
umbrella. Even in the rain you won't need 
the reflected red glow of it in your face. 
There is the question of the green umbrella, 
too. You certainly don't want to bring green 
[ 63 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


&l<xj ^ 


so near your face. 
Black or dark 
■^1 blue is a better 

o/[ ^^choice for you. 

If You Are 
Stout. — How 
much thought 
have you given 
to color. Just 
the mere lines of 
a dress won’t 
make you look 
slimmer if the 
color is wrong. 

It’s the incon¬ 
spicuous colors 
that will make 

Fig . {25) If you are stout , cross the ^9^ Smaller. 

vivid, the light shades and white off Black absorbs all 
y° Ur Upping list. Hght and i§ by f ar 

the most slenderizing shade you can choose, 
if black can be called a shade. 

White, which does just the opposite, reflects 
all light, will make you appear larger. 

Neutral shades, such as §ray and taupe, 
are excellent for they blend in with the sur¬ 
roundings and are most inconspicuous. 

Dark shades of brown or blue are permis¬ 
sible. Avoid any bright or light shade, as 
it will call attention to your size. 

Take an inventory of your wardrobe and 
see how many light dresses you have. Per- 
[ 64 ] 













PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


haps it hasn’t occurred to you that there are 
just as many pretty dark cottons as light ones. 
Voiles, linens, and crepes all come in dark 
shades now. As a matter of fact, dark 
cottons are considered smart. 

You can always lighten them up, you know, 
with white at the throat, and perhaps in a 
vest front. 

I might speak about color in trimmings, too. 
You may indulge your liking for brightness 
in trimmings if you choose, but be careful 
where you place the bright spot. As a matter 
of fact, it’s better to make it a narrow piping 
or binding than a spot. An edge of bright 
red or green or peacock blue to outline a vest 
front, to finish the sleeve, or across a collar 
is quite permissible, and often the stylish 
touch to the garment. However, it is not 
advisable to sew a bright piping crosswise 
on the garment or to outline a large piece. 
Keep your piping running up and down for the 
best effect. 

COMBINING COLORS 

It is not just luck that colors look pretty 
together—neither is combining color a gift 
which some people are endowed with and 
some people are not. 

When you come right down to the facts, 
it’s a little problem that has to be learned 
just like the multiplication table, only in 
[ 65 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


this case instead of learning that two times 
two makes four, you learn where the colors 
are placed in a color wheel and their relation to 
one another. See Fig. ( 26 ). To tell the truth, 
the rules are easier to remember than lots 
of the things we had to memorize back in the 
grades. 

It’s just as important for the person plan¬ 
ning a dress to know these rules as it is for the 
artist planning a painting. Both are planning 
a composition in color. If you know the 
rules, you won’t make a bad color composition. 
There won’t be any jarring notes in your 
costume. You won’t have that element of 
doubt as to whether you ought to add a 
certain color note. 

The Color Wheel —For convenience sake, 
when an artist is studying color composition, 
the colors are placed on what is called a color 
wheel. See Fig. ( 26 ). The wheel is a circle 
divided into parts, and a color painted on each 
part or the name of it written there. There 
are rules regarding the placing of the colors 
on the wheel, and laws regarding the relation 
of one color to the other. Colors have certain 
definite effects on one another when placed 
close together or overlapped. 

Sometimes only the primary colors of the 
spectrum, red, green and violet are placed 
on. the wheel. However, for dress designing, 
it is more practical to include the in-between 
shade as in Fig. ( 26 ). 

[ 66 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 



The colors are placed on the wheel with what 
are called complementary colors opposite each 
other . 

Complementary Colors .—A colored 

object shows a certain color by absorbing part 
of the light rays and reflecting part of the light 
rays. For instance, we know that light 
consists of the colors of the spectrum, red, 
green and violet. If an object is red, it 
absorbs the green and violet rays, and reflects 
only the red rays of light. Therefore, green 
[ 67 ] 





A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


blue which is a combination of green and 
violet is the complementary color to red or 
the shade which is absorbed by a red object. 

That a red object really absorbs this shade 
has been proven by tests. Also the other 
complementary colors have been determined. 

Learn the complementary colors: 

Red—green blue. 

Red yellow — blue. 

Yellow—blue purple. 

Yellow green — purple. 

Green—purple red. 

Make a color wheel for yourself, and place 
the complementary colors opposite each other. 

Those opposite each other on the color wheel 
(complementary colors') can be combined —as 
blue and red yellow (orange). Of course 
you must remember this in making clothes— 
have one predominating color and just a 
touch of the other for trimming if they are 
direct opposites as in this case. 

The second rule is that you can combine 
colors near together on the wheel as blue and 
blue green (turquoise). 

The third rule is that you can use different 
degrees of the same shade together as navy 
blue and Copenhagen, or brown and tan. 

The fourth rule is that you can use three 
colors together which are about an equal 
[ 68 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


distance apart on the wheel as yellow green, 
blue and purple red. Here, too, have one 
color dominating and the other to supplement 
it. Probably such a combination would be 
used on the light tones of these colors. For 
instance, the bodice and drop skirt of a dance 
frock may be lavender, with overskirts of 
light yellowish green and blue tulle. 

The fifth rule concerns black, gray and 
white. As black is a combination of all the 
colors in their full intensity , it can be used 
with any one of them . Gray is also a com¬ 
bination of all or several of the colors and can 
be combined with other shades . In gray 
material one color is apt to be in evidence. 
We have blue grays, pink grays, brown grays, 
etc. In combining gray with blue, use a 
bluish gray, not a pink gray. White is the 
absence of all color so it can be used with any 
shade . 

These rules have to be followed most 
explicity where the colors are intense or vivid. 
Where colors are dark , that is , have black or 
the complementary color mixed with them , 
you can be more lax in combining them with 
other colors without striking a jarring note. 
The same thing holds true where light shades 
are used, more white being added to them. 
The whole rainbow of pastel shades can be 
used together in perfect harmony . 

Caution must be exercised in using colors 
in their full intensity, as scarlet, emerald 
[ 69 ] 




A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


green, electric blue, etc. A child or a savage 
revels in violent and garish colors, while 
refined people instinctively choose the sub¬ 
dued tones. Large amounts of violently 
contrasting color are never beautiful. 

It is well to remember that reds and yellows 
are affected more by artificial light than the 
violet and blue shades. Often, red or yellow 
will seem to change its shade under an 
electric or gas light. 

Here are a few examples of the applications 
of the different rules: 

ist: You know that blue and scarlet are 
complementary colors. The correct com¬ 
bining of these two shades might be expressed 
in a dark navy blue serge or twill dress. 
Suppose the dress had a deep V opening in 
the front, narrow revers, and a small collar. 
If the revers and collar were piped with a 
very narrow strip of scarlet (not more than 
a cord) and then a sheer batiste or net over¬ 
collar and vest added, so far as the color 
was concerned, the dress would be perfect. 

However, if instead of the piping you used 
a broad band of red goods, the effect would 
be garish. It is never wise to use comple¬ 
mentary colors both in their most brilliant 
shades unless they combine to form the 
smallest motif on the dress, as bright blue 
and red interwoven with dark blue em¬ 
broidery on a dark blue dress. 

[ 70 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


2nd: One often sees the application of 
rule 2 concerning the combination of colors 
near together on the wheel. Just in the way 
of an example, we might consider the fuchsia 
colors which are purple and a purple red 
(cerise). This can be beautifully worked 
out in an evening cape, using purple velvet 
for the outside of the cape and then cerise 
silk veiled with purple chiffon for the lining. 

3rd: You have probably applied time and 
time again the third rule—using different 
degrees of the same color. A brown linen 
dress embroidered in tan wool yarn is a 
pleasing example of this rule. 

There is only one danger in applying the 
rule. Make sure that your two shades of 
blue or red or green aren’t mixed with dif¬ 
ferent colors, as a yellow green and blue 
green. If the dark shade is yellow green, 
and the light shade a blue green, they won’t 
look well together. On the other hand, a 
dark blue green and a light blue green will 
harmonize perfectly. 

4th: Three colors about an equal distance 
apart on the wheel will harmonize, too. Of 
course, they ought not be used in three areas 
of equal proportion. An example of a correct 
combination of this kind is a dark blue chiffon 
dress beaded in a paisley design with purplish 
red, yellow and black beads. 

5th: Black, gray or white can be intro¬ 
duced into any color scheme. The becoming- 
[ 71 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


ness of a white collar on any dress is a proof 
of this. You have probably noticed, too, 
that an edge of black braid seems in keeping 
with a green, a blue, a red, or a purple dress. 

Colors darken as they have more black 
added to them, and lighten as they have more 
white added. If sufficient black is added to 
darken the colors considerably, any of the 
colors can be used together, as the black 
neutralizes them. The same is true if white 
is added until colors are a pastel shade. All 
the colors of the spectrum in pastel shades are 
in perfect harmony . 

YOUR SEWING MACHINE 

Sewing machines differ somewhat in their 
construction, but a few rules apply to all of 
them: 

Do not let the machine stand open when you 
are not using it. Dust will clog it. 
Keep a muslin cover to throw over the 
machine when you do not want to remove 
the work. 

Oil your machine at night—a freshly oiled 
machine is apt to soil the work. 

Clean the machine at least once a month, 
wiping it free from lint and dust. 

Do not run your machine with the presser 
foot down, unless there is material under 
it. If the presser foot rests on the feed, 
it will wear out the feed. 

[ 72 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


Do not run your machine threaded before 
placing your material. The thread will 
clog and break. 

Remember that you cannot pull the material 
faster than the machine feeds. Guide 
the material, but do not pull it or you 
may bend or break the needle. 


REGULATING THE TENSIONS 



Fig. ( 27) If the tensions of your machine are adjusted correctly , 
the stitches will lock in the center. 


On a lock stitch sewing machine, if the 
tensions are properly regulated, the thread 
links in the exact center of the fabric. The 
stitch on the right and wrong side of the goods 
will look identical. See Fig. 27 . 



Fig. {28) If the needle tension is tight , the thread lies flat on the 
upper surfaces . 

[ 73 ] 






A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


If the tension on the upper thread is too 
tight, or the bobbin thread too loose, the 
upper thread will lie on the surface of the 
goods. See Fig. 28. The thread is apt to 
catch and pucker. 



Fig. ( 29 ) If the bobbin tension is tight , the under thread is straight. 


On the other hand, where the bobbin thread 
is tight or the upper thread too loose, the 
reverse happens, and the thread on the under 
side (next to the feed) will appear straight 
on the surface. See Fig. 29. This does not 
make a pretty stitching, and the thread is apt 
to pucker. However, it makes a stitching 
that is easy to rip. Try it sometime, when 
you are just testing the fit of a garment. 

Once the bobbin tension has been properly 
adjusted, it will need but little change. 
Usually the tension can be suited to different 
materials by changing the needle tension . 

Always test the tension and length of 
stitch before starting to stitch the garment. 

The Pressure on the Material. —Do you ever 
regulate the pressure of your sewing machine 
foot? There should be just sufficient pressure 
to prevent the goods from raising with the 
[ 74 ] 





PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


needle. On very sheer or flimsy goods, 
increase the pressure. On extremely thick 
goods, lessen it. 

If your machine is running hard , look at the 
presser foot. There may be too much pres¬ 
sure. 

Turning a Corner .—Run the stitching to 
the exact corner. Stop the machine with the 
needle in the goods. Raise the presser foot, 
turn the material so that it is in the correct 
position for the next stitching, lower the 
presser foot, and stitch. 

PROPER THREAD AND NEEDLES 

It is important that you use the right thread 
and the right needle for the material; that is, 
if you want your machine to run easily and 
to have really good work. The needle must 
suit the thread, too. Here are tables for 
reference: 


[ 75 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


MACHINE NEEDLES AND THREAD 


Material 

Size of Needle 

Sewing Cotton 
Sewing Silk 

Mull, chiffon, etc. 

Very fine needle 

No. 9 

100 to 150 cotton 

00 or 000 sewing silk 

Voile, very fine linen 
or silk goods 

Medium fine needle 

No. 11 

80 to 100 cotton 

0 sewing silk 

Shirtings, fine ging¬ 
hams, and medium 
weight silks 

Medium machine needle 
No. 14 

60 to 80 cotton 

A or B sewing silk 

Coarse gingham, light 
weight woolen goods 
or heavy silks 

Medium coarse machine 
needle 

No. 16 

40 to 60 cotton 

C sewing silk 

Denim or coatings 

Coarse machine needle 
No. 18 

30 to 40 cotton 

D sewing silk 

Heavy woolen tickings, 
khaki cloth 

Very coarse machine 
needle 

No. 19 

24 to 30 cotton 

E sewing silk 

60 to 80 linen thread 


NEEDLE AND THREAD FOR HAND SEWING 


Material 

Size of Needle 

Sewing Cotton 
Sewing Silk 

Mull, chiffon, etc. 

No. 10 to No. 12 

100 to 150 cotton 

00 or 000 sewing silk 

Voile, very fine linen 
or silk 

No. 9 

80 to 100 cotton 

0 sewing silk 

Shirtings, fine ging¬ 
hams, and medium 
weight silks 

No. 7 or No. 8 

60 to 90 cotton 

A or B sewing silk 

Coarse gingham, light 
weight woolens or 
heavy silks 

No. 6 

40 to 60 cotton 

C sewing silk 

Denim or coatings 

No. 4 or No. 5 

24 to 40 cotton 

D sewing silk 

Heavy woolens, tick¬ 
ings or khaki cloth 

No. 1 to No. 3 

8 to 24 cotton 

E sewing silk 

60 to 80 linen thread 
























PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


SEWING MACHINE ATTACHMENTS 

Are you really acquainted with your sewing 
machine? Do you know how to use all the 
attachments? Do you know everything that 
each attachment will do? Run over the 
list and see if you know how to use the 
following attachments: 

Narrow hemmer 

Wide hemmer 

Binder 

Tucker 

Ruffler 

Edge stitcher 

Corder 

Quilter 

Narrow Hemmer .—This attachment is 
merely another kind of a sewing machine 
foot. The foot of the machine is removed 
and the hemmer is put on in its place. 

It is possible to do several things with a 
narrow hemmer. If you are using this 
attachment, it isn't even necessary to crease 
the edge in order to turn a narrow hem. 
Just guide the goods and as it feeds through 
the foot, the edge is rolled and stitched at one 
time. See Fig. 30. 

It is excellent for hemming a cuff or a 
trimming piece. It does not work well on 
curved edges. 


[ 77 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 



Fig. ( 30 ) A narrow hemmer folds and stitches the edge 
automatically. 


The goods must be removed from the 
hemmer at a corner. 


Lace can be joined to the edge at the same 
time that the edge is hemmed. Slip the lace in 



Fig. (37) You can hem an edge and sew on lace at one time . ** 


[ 78 ] 













PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


next to the thread and the one stitching 
will do all the work. See Fig. 31. It can 
also be used for setting in insertion, handling 
the insertion the same as the lace. 

The neatest kind of a lapped felled seam can 
also be made with this attachment . Place the 
two pieces to be joined one on top of the 
other under the hemmer with the underpiece 
extending a quarter inch beyond the edge of 
the upper piece, and stitch. (Here the edge 
of the material is not turned under.) 

Open up the two pieces of the material 
and hem the free edge of the under piece. 

Such an attachment is invaluable in making 
underwear, blouses, men's shirts and children's 
clothes. As you progress with the lessons, 
you see innumerable ways of applying it. 
Learn how to use the narrow hemmer for 
your machine now. 

The book of instructions that comes with 
every sewing machine will tell you just how 
to adjust it to your particular machine. 

Wide Hemmer .—This attachment is ad¬ 
justed at the side of the foot. 

Instructions for adjusting the hemmer comes 
with every sewing machine. 

I add just these few suggestions. Pull the 
goods back and forth in the hemmer until 
the hem is turned properly. Then stitch, 
guiding the material so that the hemmer is 
always full. See Fig. 32. 

[79] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 



The wide hemmer will work only on straight 
edges. It is a great convenience in hemming 
sheets, making underwear, children’s clothes, 
wash dresses and blouses. Just in the way 
of an example, there is the center front closing 
of a waist, and the hem at the top of the 
turn back cuffs. Perhaps you have planned 
your work so that you are making several 
blouses at one time. With the wide hemmer 
you can roll and turn the edges and finish all 
these pieces in a few minutes. 

In making a garment or garments where 
you expect to use the wide hemmer, place all 
the pieces that need hemming in one bundle, 
and run these through the hemmer before 
closing the seams. It will facilitate the work. 

[BO] 








PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


The hemmer works better when the pieces 
are flat, and if you run them through all at 
one time it saves taking the hemmer on and 
off the machine. 

Binder .—Another time saving attachment 
is the binder. It is a scroll shaped piece of 
metal which sometimes attaches like a presser 
foot or in other machines screws to the side 
of the regular foot. 

Draw the bias strip of material through 
the scroll and under the needle. Insert the 
edge to be bound between the two thicknesses 
of the bias and stitch. See Fig. 33. 



Fig. (33) There is no hand folding when you use a binder . 


Think how simple it is to make a house- 
dress when you can bind the edges with just 
one stitching. There is no folding or pressing 
either of the bias to prepare it. Bias bindings 
[ 81 ] 






A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


make a pretty trimming, too, on children’s 
gingham, percale and chambray frocks. 

Tucker .—There is no tiresome measuring 
and marking for the widths between the tucks 
or the width of the stitching if you use a 
tucking attachment. The attachment is ad¬ 
justed to the machine the same as a presser 
foot. There are gages you can set to regulate 
the width of the tuck and the width between 
the tucks. 


Crease the material and stitch as shown in 
Fig. 34. The attachment marks where the 
next tuck is to be creased. 



underwear or summer dresses . 

One point you must remember in using a 
tucker is to form the tuck on the straight 
thread of the goods. It is almost impossible 
to tuck a bias. 

You can have just as many pin tucks in 
your summer organdies and dimities as your 
[ 82 ] 






PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


heart desires if you learn how to run your 
tucker. And think how much prettier you 
can make your blouses and children’s clothes 
with the addition of tucks here and there. 

Ruffler —How many hours have you spent 
running in gather threads? Of course, there 
are places where nothing else will answer 
for the gather thread, but how about the 
ruffles and frills? You can run them through 
a ruffler in just about three minutes and do 
away with an hour’s hand work. 

There is a ruffling attachment which comes 
with nearly every sewing machine. Take out 
yours now. It is just the matter of a couple 
of thumb screws to adjust it. Place the 
material between the two blades of the 
ruffler and stitch as shown in Fig. 35. 



Fig. ( 35) Use a ruffler and do away with handrun shirr threads 
wherever you can. 


[83] 




A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


If it’s a petticoat ruffle that you are gather¬ 
ing, you can sew it to the bottom of the petti¬ 
coat and sew on a bias at the same time, by 
laying the ruffle on the right side of the petti¬ 
coat and inserting the bias as in Fig. 36. 



After the petticoat is removed from the 
machine, turn the ruffle into its finished 
position, fold under the free edge of the bias, 
and stitch a second time, using the regular 
presser foot. 

Edge Stitcher .—The name almost tells the 
story—an edge stitcher is for joining lace. 
If you are making underwear or children’s 
clothes or dainty summer dresses it is almost 
indispensable. 

The lace is placed in the attachment as 
shown in Fig. 37. All you have to do is 
guide it and the attachment laps one edge 
over the other and the needle stitches through 
both pieces of lace. 












PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 



The edge stitcher can be used for joining 
narrow bias trimming folds to the material, 
too. Or, you can use it for sewing on ribbon. 
It will keep the stitching true to the edge. 

Cording Foot .—Of course, you know, that 
you can't stitch cording with an ordinary 
sewing machine foot. The frong of the foot 
won't permit you to stitch nearer the cord 
than an eighth of an inch which is simply 
useless. 

I heard one woman say who had been 
sewing for years, “there isn't any way of 
[ 85 ] 













A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


machine stitching cording. It has to be 
stitched by hand.” Probably all the time, 
there was a cording foot packed away in 
her sewing machine drawer. 

The cording foot is just like a regular foot 
except that the narrow frong isn’t there. 
This makes it possible to stitch close to the 
cording. See Fig. 38. 



Fig. (38) A cording foot is made without the narrow frong that 
an ordinary sewing machine toot has. 


You will find cording fully described in 
Lesson XII. 

Probably in the seasons when cording is 
the style, every dress that you make will 
require endless cording. There is always 
more or less cording used to trim children’s 
dresses. 

Quitter or Foot with Gage .—Just because 
this sewing machine foot is called a quilter 
[ 86 ] 








PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


doesn’t mean that it is used only for quilting. 
As a matter of fact, the name is rather mis¬ 
leading for the foot with a gage comes in 
handy for many ordinary purposes. 

The novice at sewing especially cannot 
afford to be without the foot with a gage. 

If you want to double stitch a seam, it 
will keep the second stitching even. 

If you want to stitch back from the edges 
of a coat, it will keep the stitching exactly 
true. 

If you want to add several rows of parallel 
stitching for trimming around a collar, use 
the foot with a gage to keep it parallel. 



Fig. (39) A foot with a gage will help you to 
keep your stitching true . 

[87] 








A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


It can be used for diamond shaped quilting, 
too. It will keep the rows exactly even. 

Fig. 39 shows the attachment. It goes 
onto the machine just like the regular sewing 
machine foot. Three minutes with your screw 
driver will attach it. 


HAND SEWING 


Do you vary the stitches you use in hand 
sewing? One kind of a stitch wont serve for 
all purposes you know. Suit the stitches to 
the kind of work that you are doing. Here 
are the stitches you will need to use the most. 
Practice making them until you are adept 
with your needle. 

Running Stitch. —The simplest of all hand 
stitches is running stitch shown in Fig. 40. 
Making this stitch is merely a matter of 
running the needle in and out of the goods 
at regular intervals. It is the kind of a 
stitch that is used for handrun seams and 
gathering. 



Fig {40) Running stitch which is used for bastings handrun 
seams , etc. r 









PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


Once you have inserted the needle in the 
goods do not remove it until the needle has 
all the material on it that it will hold. 

Running stitches for ordinary purposes are 
made usually about one-eighth of an inch 
long. However, an old rule which always 
holds true is “The finer the material, the 
shorter the stitch.” 

Keep in mind two things in practicing to 
make running stitches. Make them as evenly 
as possible and keep them in a straight line. 
A crooked seam is an acknowledgment of 
the lack of practice. 

It is a good idea for the beginner to mark 
the exact stitching line with a tracing wheel 
run along the edge of a ruler. 

Back Stitch. —One might almost call this 
a stay stitch for that is its purpose. If you 
want hand sewing that is firm use back 
stitches. See Fig. 41. 



Fig. (41) Back stitches hold the goods firmly. 


They are formed by inserting the needle 
as for a running stitch, bringing it out oil 
the right side of the goods and inserting it 
a second time at the point where it was first 
[ 89 ] 








A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


inserted. This time bring it out beyond the 
first stitch. 

Sometimes, in a handrun seam, every 
fourth or fifth stitch is made a back stitch 
to strengthen the stitching. There are places 
where a seam finished in this way is to be 
preferred to a machine stitched seam. For 
instance, the daintiest and most expensive 
lingerie in the shops is made entirely by 
hand. A neatly run French seam, in a sheer 
camisole or chemise adds as much as the 
trimming. Babies’ clothes too seem to call 
for a hand finish and certainly hand work 
adds to the little girl’s sheer batiste or lawn 
frock. 

Basting .—The basting stitch you use de¬ 
pends on what you are sewing. Seams are 
usually basted with a long and short running 
stitch. In this case, the long stitches are 
about one inch long and the short stitches 
measure about one-half inch. 

In basting a seam , place the basting beyond 
the seam allowance. When you stitch, run 
the stitching just inside the basting. This 
makes it possible to remove the basting 
threads easily. However, if the stitching is 
directly on top of the basting, it is almost 
impossible to pull them out. 

There is a cotton which comes especially 
for basting. It is easily broken. Ask for 
basting cotton. 


[90] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


Always use a cotton that contrasts to the 
material. A matching cotton is difficult to 
see and pick out. 

If you use sewing silk to baste silk material , 
the stitches will not be so apt to leave a mark . 



In basting one piece of material to another 
as a lining to a coat y use diagonal, basting as 
shown in Fig. 42 . Diagonal stitches hold 
more firmly than running stitches. In 
[91] 











A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


diagonal basting, the cross stitches are about 
one-half inch wide and the diagonal stitches 
are about one inch long. 

Overcasting .—Where you want to finish 
the raw edges of a seam, whip them with over 
and over stitches. See Fig. 43. It will 
prevent them from ravelling. If the stitches 
are placed about one-quarter of an inch 
apart the overcasting can be done rapidly. 



Fig. (43) Seams that are overcast will not ravel. 

[ 92 ] 







PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


It is a help to thumb tack the material to 
the sewing table, overcast for a ways, then 
thumb tack again further on. 

Just overcasting makes a pretty trimming, 
too, for a child’s dress. Sometime, try over¬ 
casting the collar and cuffs of a yellow cham- 
bray with black mercerized embroidery cotton. 

Felling .—Hems, folds and lining are felled 
in place. This means taking stitches in the 
hem and outside material which will hardly 
show. 

Insert the needle first in the hem, the 
fold or the lining and then in the outside 
garment as shown in Fig. 44. Take up only 
a thread or two of the outside goods as the 



The correct position of the needle in felling a hem . 

[ 93 ] 


Fig. (44) 










A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


stitches ought not to show on the right side 
of the goods. 

In turning a hem, you will find it a great 
help to press it before attempting to fell it in 
place. Folds ought to be thoroughly pressed 
before they are sewn to the garment. 

Blind Stitching .—It is possible to blind 
stitch more quickly than to fell by hand 
because in blind stitching the stitches are 
placed further apart. 

Blind stitching is used to tack trimming in 
place. For instance, the girdle that looks 
loose and careless yet ought to be firm. Just 
a blind stitch here and there will hold it. 

Fig. 45 shows the position of the needle. 
The stitches may be placed from one-half 
inch to five inches apart, as the case requires. 



[94] 







PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


SEAMS AND THEIR USES 

Suit your seam to the material and the 
place. Thick materials need as flat a seam 
as possible. On the other hand, in thin 
goods it is often advantageous to give quite a 
different finish. 

We have all heard the remark that a 
certain garment has a homemade look. It 
may be, too, that the garment is carefully 
and neatly made. It is not always the case, 
but very often the fault can be traced to 
seams. There is a thick seam where there 
ought to be a thin one and a tailored finish 
where there ought to be a delicately hand- 
run seam. And so it goes. The garment 
isn’t well turned out. 

Study your material and use the right 
seam. 

Open Seams .—Where a flat finish is de¬ 
sired, press the edges of a plain seam open. 
See Fig. 46. 

For instance, you would know at a glance 
that a heavy overcoating ought not to be 
stitched into a French seam. Four thick¬ 
nesses of the goods would make a bulky 
unsightly ridge. However, if the two pieces 
of the overcoating are placed with the right 
sides of the goods together and stitched the 
length of the seam and the seam pressed 
open, the joining will hardly show. 

[95] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 



pressed open, too, and where a dress material 
is heavy, it is best to press open the seams. 















PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


The edges of an open seam are finished 
with a binding or overcast. See Lesson II, 
for binding. 

French Seams .—Probably the French 
seam is used more than any other in ordinary 



Fig. {47) An enlarged view of the first stitching in a French seam . 












A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


sewing. A French seam is the neatest finish 
for underwear, cotton dresses, blouses and 
little girls' frocks of gingham, chambray, 
organdie and like materials. 

A French seam is also used for silk and no 
finish is daintier than a French seam hand run 
in a batiste chemise, an infant's nainsook 
frock or a little girl's party frock of chiffon. 

To make a French seam, lay the two pieces 
to be joined with the wrong sides of the goods 
together and stitch the length of the seam, 
running the stitching one-eighth of an inch 
from the edge. See Fig. 47. Turn the pieces 
wrong side out and crease along the joining. 
Press the garment and stitch a second time, 
running the stitching one-quarter of an inch 
from the creased edge. See Fig. 48. 

This gives a neat finish on both the right 
and the wrong side of the garment but a French 
seam won’t answer for every purpose. 

Don't use a French seam in thick material. 
It is too bulky. 

Don't use a French seam where you want 
a flat finish. For instance, at the shoulder a 
French seam will make a ridge. Except in 
sheer materials, an open or double stitched 
seam is better. 

Don't use a French seam where you want a 
tailored finish. A tailored blouse or a boy’s 
shirt looks better with double stitched or 
lap felled seams. 


[ 98 ] 




PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 



Fig. {48) The second stitching in making a French seam. 


Double Stitched Seams .—If the raw 
edges of a plain seam are both turned in one 
direction and the seam stitched a second time, 
it is called a double stitched seam. See Fig. 
49. Such a seam will give a garment a tailored 
appearance. 

Double stitched seams are used in some 
cases at the side front and side back seams 
of a coat. 


[ 99 ] 











A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 



Fig. (49) Double stitched seams are used where a tailored finish 
is desired. 

If a dress is semi-fitted with a dart or side 
front seams, the dart or seam is usually 
double stitched. Sometimes where speed is 
to be considered, it is also used in the place 
of lap felled seams in blouses and children’s 
clothing. 

To make a double stitched seam, lay the 
two pieces to be joined with the right sides 
of the material together and stitch the length 
of the seam, running the stitching a seam’s 
width back from the raw edges. The regu¬ 
lation seam allowance is usually three-eighths 
of an inch. Open up the garment and turn 
[ 100 ] 











PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


both raw edges of the seam in one direction. 
Press the garment and stitch again. This 
time stitch from the right side of the garment 
and run the stitching parallel to the seam. 

Here is where a sewing machine foot with 
a gage comes in handy. The gage can be set 
the distance you want the stitching from the 
seam. Then, in running through the material, 
place the edge of the gage on the joining of 
the seam and the needle will stitch evenly 
the exact distance back from the seam that 
you want the second stitching. 

The distance the stitching is placed back 
from the seam is a matter of choice. In a 
coat or dress the stitching varies from one- 
eighth of an inch to one-quarter of an inch 
from the seam. 

Lap Felled Seams .—You will recall that I 
have already told you how to make a lap 
felled seam with the special attachment—a 
narrow hemmer—in place of the regular sew¬ 
ing machine foot. 

It is also possible to make a lap felled seam 
with regular sewing machine foot, although 
it means turning the edge by hand. For the 
first stitching, la y the two pieces to be joined 
with the right sides of the goods together, 
letting the under piece extend one-quarter of 
an inch beyond the edge of the upper piece. 
Stitch the length of the seam, running the 
stitching one-quarter of an inch from the 
edge of the upper piece. See Fig. 50. Open 
[ 101 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 



Fig. ( 50 ) The first stitching in making a lap jelled seam. 


out the garment and press the seam. Turn 
both raw edges of the seam in one direction 
and press the seam. Turn under the raw 
edge and stitch a second time as shown in 
Fig. 51. . 

This gives you a flat seam finished on both 
sides. Perhaps you are wondering why it is 
called a lap felled seam when it is stitched 
by machine. The seam was named at the 
time when all sewing was done by hand. 
Then, the first joining was done with running 
[ 102 ] 











PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 



stitch and the raw edge caught down on the 
wrong side of the garment by hand felling 
and so we have the name lap felled seam. 
Even today, where it is best not to have the 
second stitching show, the raw edge is caught 
by hand felling. 


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A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


A lap felled seam always gives a tailored 
look to the garment. It is used in making 
men’s shirts, underwear and pajamas, also 
for boys shirts, wash trousers, underwear and 
pajamas. It gives a plain blouse style to 
tailor it with a lap felled seam. It is a good 
finish, too, at the shoulder of little girls’ wash 
dresses. 

A lap felled seam never looks nice in 
transparent material such as chiffon or very 
thin miislins. 

A Slot Seam .—Where the edges of two 
pieces are turned under and they are joined 
to an inset section, tuck fashion, the joining 
is called a slot seam. It really adds a trimming. 
See Fig. 52. 

The center front of a skirt is often finished 
with a slot seam. It’s a pretty way, too, ot 
trimming children’s clothes, especially if the 
under section is of contrasting material. A 
navy blue serge with the undersections of the 
slot seams bright red or green is effective. 
A little girl’s dress may have slot seams at 
the center-front, the center-back and the 
sides of the skirt; also at the center-front of 
the waist. 

To make a slot seam, bind either edge of 
the under facing. See binding, Lesson II. 
Turn under the edges of the two pieces to be 
joined and lap them over the under facing, 
letting the edges of the two pieces just 
[104] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 



Fig. (52) A slot seam makes a pretty trimming for children's dresses. 

touch at the center. Stitch any desired 
distance back from the edges. See Fig. 52. 

Sometimes, the two pieces are spread 
apart a little letting the inset section show 
more. The amount you spread them is a 
[105] 

















A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


matter of taste. They are spread all the 
way from one-quarter of an inch to an inch. 

HOW TO TAKE MEASUREMENTS 

The following measurements are necessary 
and after they are obtained, should be kept 
ready for reference all the way through in 
the making of a garment: 

Bust measure 
Neck measure 
Width of chest 
Width of back 

Length of front from neck to waistline 
Length of back from neck to waistline 
Length of sleeve 
Waist measure 
Hip measure 

Length from waistline to floor at center 
front, center back and each side 
Remove the Dress to Take all Measurements .— 
Measure over the underwaist and petticoat. 
In ordering commercial patterns, always order 
by the actual measurement. Allowances are 
made in the patterns for different types of 
garments. For instance, a pattern for a 
coat is made larger than a pattern for a 
blouse, although they are both marked the 
standard size as thirty-six or forty. 

Taking the Bust Measure .—Stand behind 
the person being measured and pass the tape 
[ 106 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


around the form loosely. Hold it between 
the thumb and first finger of the right hand 
at the center back and with the left hand 
slip it down in the front over the fullest part 
of the bust. Bring it well up under the arms 
and high across the back over the fullest 
part 01 the shoulder blades. Draw up the 
tape snugly but it ought not to be really 
tight. Note what the measurement is in 
inches. 

The Neck Measure .—Also take this measure¬ 
ment from the back, passing the tape around 
the base of the neck. Draw it snugly. 

The Width of Chest .—Measure across the 
chest at a point that would be about two- 
thirds of the way down the armholes of the 
finished garment. Do not continue the tape 
under the arm but take the measurement 
from arm muscle to arm muscle. 

The Width of Back .—Measure across the 
back at a point about half way down the 
armhole. This gives you the narrowest point 
across the back and is the width that the 
garment ought to measure across the back. 

Length of Arm .—The best way of determ¬ 
ining the length of the arm, is to place the yard 
stick or a tailor’s square under the arm and 
note the length to the wrist. If a square is 
used, place the short arm of the square 
across the armpit and let the long arm extend 
along the inside of the arm. The sleeve 
[ 107 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


length ought to be taken to the joint at 
the wrist. 

The Waist Measure. —In taking the waist 
measure, you will find it a help to place a 
cord around the waistline to locate the 
smallest point. Make a loop in one end of 
the cord and place the cord around the waist¬ 
line, pass the other end through the loop, 
draw up the cord tightly and tie it. It will 
naturally slip to the smallest part which is 
the normal waistline. Measure over the 
cord with the tape. Even if you want a 
loose garment or one with fullness, this 
measurement will give you the right basis on 
which to work. 

The Hip Measure .—Before removing the 
cord from the waistline, measure down at 
the center front, center back and sides six 
inches and fasten pins to the skirts at these 
points. Measure around the skirt over top 
of the pins for the hip measurement. (Note.— 
The six inch point is where the hip measure 
is usually taken, however, some commercial 
patterns specify that the hip measure is 
taken at a lower point.) 

Length of Front from Neck to Waistline .— 
You will find it a great help to know the 
length from the neck to the waistline. Take 
this measurement while the cord is around 
the waistline. 

Length of Back from Neck to Waistline .— 
Measure from the neck bone at the base of 

[ 108 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


the neck in the back to the cord at the waist¬ 
line. 

Length from Waistline to Floor .—It’s a poor 
plan to attempt to measure the length of 
the skirt that a woman is wearing. Measure 
from the waistline to the floor—it will give 
you a better guide to work with. Then if 
you want the skirt, six, eight or ten inches 
from the floor you can subtract it from the 
total amount. Have the person being meas¬ 
ured stand squarely with her heels together 
and measure from the cord at the waistline 
to the floor at the center front, center back 
and sides. 


SEWING EQUIPMENT 

Of course you have your sewing machine. 
IPs hard to find a woman who hasn’t these 
days. Well, all you need to start right in 
sewing is a needle and thimble, a pair of 
shears and a tape measure. 

As a matter of fact, it’s a good plan not 
to buy a whole lot of equipment until you 
have sewed a while and found out just how 
much you really need and just how much 
you can do without. 

However, perhaps later on you will make a 
profession of Dressmaking and here is a little 
list for an ideally equipped sewing room that 
you can usse for reference at any time : 

Chest of drawers 

Closet or wardrobe 

[ 109 ] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


Cutting table 

One or two full-length mirrors 
Ironing board (regular size) 

Sleeve board 
Iron 
Basin 
Sponge 

Press cloth of duck or canvas 
Shrink cloth 

Several strips of muslin with which to 
cover work 

Wire coat and dress hangers 

Dressmaker’s dummy 

Square 

Yard stick 

Curved ruler 

Steel tape 

Steel tracing wheel with sharp points 
Heavy shears for cutting cloth 
Shears for cutting paper 
Small scissors for clipping threads 
Waste paper basket for clippings 
Paper weights 
Pins 
Needles 
Thimble 
Elastic bands 
Tailor’s wax and chalk 
[HO] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


Pad of paper and pencil 
Sharp knife 

The chest of drawers is needed for patterns, 
material and sewing equipment. It is a good 
plan to keep one drawer for patterns, one 
drawer for new materials, one drawer for 
garments which are cut out, another for tools, 
and one for left-over ends and scraps of 
material. 



Fig. {53) A shelf will serve in place of a closet. 


From the very start, make it a habit to 
mark for whom each pattern is, and always 
take time to fold the pattern into its proper 
envelope before putting it away. 



Fig. {54) The curtains adjusted to shelf. 


When garments are partly or nearly finished , 
hang them up when you stop sewing. It 
prevents them from getting soiled and mussed. 
If your sewing room has a closet, it easily 
[ 111 ] 


















A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


solves the problem of where to hang them. 
If there is no closet and you do not want 
to go to the expense of buying a wardrobe, 
a shelf put up on brackets with a curtain 
tacked to it will answer the purpose of a closet . 



Fig. ( 55) Hang up the coat or 
partly finished dress to prevent 
it Jrom wrinkling. 


The Figs. 53 and 54 
show the shelf and cur¬ 
tain. Suitable wire coat 
and skirt hangers can 
be bought at any 
department or five and 
ten cent store. Good 
types are illustrated 
in Figs. 55 and 56 . 



The cutting table ought to 
be forty inches or wider and 
at least two yards long. If 
your space is limited have a ™ {56) Trouserhang . 
carpenter build horses and ers answer admirably for 
a collapsible top. (See Figs, hanging up a skin. 
57 , 58 and 59 .) A table of this description 
can be easily taken apart and leaned 
against the wall. 



Fig. (57) A wide cutting table is a great advantage. 

[ 112 ] 













PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


If the top of the table is soft wood and 
smooth it is not necessary to cover it. How¬ 
ever, in time it is bound to rough up from 
the tracing wheel. It pays to cover any 
table with linoleum or heavy oilcloth. If 
linoleum is used shellac it so the fabric will 
not cling to the surface. 

If you have two 
mirrors place them 
opposite each other 
so that by looking 
in one glass you 
can see your back 
in the other. 

An ironing board 
without a frame is 

the most S a t i S f a C- (•&) The horse for a collapsible table 

\ i • i is easy to make. 

tory. Askirtcanbe 

slipped over it without danger of crushing the 
part that comes at the under side of the board. 

If your table is supported by horses, these 
will work nicely for the ironing board too, 
or rest the board on the backs of two chairs. 




Be sure to pad your 
board well. Tailors’ 
wadding can be used 
for this purpose, put 
on in smooth, even 
sheets. Fold the wad¬ 
ding over the edge and 


, „ ... UIIliiUVtA aiiu 

The WpeJ a collapsible ^ j t tQ ^ un( J er 


[113] 














A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


side of the board. Several thicknesses of a 
woolen bed blanket also make a satisfactory 
padding. After the padding is tacked to the 
board, cover the board with several thick¬ 
nesses of muslin. Draw the outside muslin 
tightly and smoothly, rolling it over edge 
and sewing it securely or tacking it to the 
under side of the board. 

For coat mak¬ 
ing, you will need 
a sleeve board. (See 
Fig.6o.) This, too, 
needs a thick 
padding. 

An electric iron is a great convenience 
but not a necessity. A one burner gas 
stove or a small oil stove and an ordinary 
flat iron make a practical substitute. 

Do not try to get along without an iron 
and ironing board. 

Pressing is One of the Most Essential Things 
in Garment Making .—It is impossible to 
do neat work unless each piece is pressed 
before joining and every edge pressed before 
stitching. 

Include in your pressing outfit a press 
cloth, a basin for water , and a small sponge. 

Duck makes the best press cloth as it does 
not cling to the iron. The press cloth ought 
to be about a yard and a quarter long. 

[ 114 ] 



Fig. (60) A sleeve board is an advantage 
in pressing a coat sleeve. 





PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


Most cotton wash fabrics can be pressed 
successfully without a press cloth, but cottons 
in woolen finish and woolens must be covered 
with a damp cloth or the heat of the iron will 
shine the surface. 

Press silks from the wrong side and with 
an iron only lukewarm. Heat rots silk. 

Seams are pressed open more easily if they 
are dampened; so keep a basin of water 
and a sponge handy. 

Cottons and woolens ought to be well shrunk 
before they are made up. Wash goods is 
easily shrunk by soaking in water and hanging 
in a shady place to dry. It is the slow drying 
that shrinks it. 

Woolens or cottops in woolen finish are 
treated differently. The best home method 
is to wrap the fabric in a wet cloth. Duck 
makes a good shrink cloth. The shrink cloth 
ought to be about a yard longer than the 
material. 

Lay the fabric on a flat surface, smooth out 
the wrinkles, dip the shrink cloth in water 
and cover the fabric with it. Roll shrink 
cloth and fabric over a board. The thin 
boards on which bolts of fabric are wrapped 
are excellent for this purpose. 

The fabric must be wrapped in the wet 
cloth at least twenty-four hours. It is then 
unrolled, hung up to dry and pressed while 
it is still damp. Mere sponging with a damp 
1115] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


cloth or sponge will not shrink material suf¬ 
ficiently so that it can be properly handled in 
tailoring . Material that has not been properly 
shrunk is sure to shrink and pucker under 
the iron when pressing. 

You will find several strips of muslin 
about three yards long a great help in 
keeping your work clean. For instance, if 
you stop working when a garment is half 
cut you can cover your cutting table with 
one of these pieces of muslin. The same 
thing applies to the machine. You need 
not always take the work out of the machine, 
but can throw the muslin over the machine 
to keep the work clean. 

There are many good adjustable dress 
forms on the market, but you can make 
an ordinary form answer your purpose. If 
you are sewing just for yourself, buy a size as 
near your measurement as possible. 

Make a muslin French lining that fits you 
and slip it over the form. If it is too loose 
at any point, pad it out. 

If you are making a business of dressmak¬ 
ing, buy a medium size form and pad out 
muslin linings for larger sizes, making them 
detachable so you can slip them on and off the 


form. 



The Fig. 61 gives 
an idea of the 
type of curved 
ruler to buy. 


Fig. (61) A curved rule will help you with 
your pattern making. 

[116] 





PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


Heavy shears are 
^needed for cutting 

Fig. (62) The cutting shears must he fabrics, a ® . iHuS— 

heavy. trated in fig. 62 . 

These ought to be kept very sharp and used 
only for cutting fabric. Keep a second pair 
of shears for cutting paper, and a small pair 
of scissors for clipping threads. 

Many of the cloth tape meas¬ 
ures are not accurately marked. 

Compare your cloth tape 
measure with the yard stick. 

A steel tape such as the one 
shown in Fig. 63 is always Fi A st ' el ta * e 
right. 



Fig. (64) Chalk 
and wax for mark¬ 
ing around the 
pattern come in 
convenient little 
cakes. 


I\ —~ "A Keep tailor’s wax and chalk 
for marking around the pattern 
on the goods. Use the wax only 
on the outer edges where the 
marks will be cut off. Chalk 
marks can be whisked off of 
woolens. The chalk and w ax 
come in little cakes, as Fig. 
64 , and are packed in boxes. They come 
in white; also gray, black and red, and are 
on sale at all dressmaking and tailors’ 
supply stores. 

A steel tracing wheel is a good investment. 
It can be used for copying patterns or mark¬ 
ing tucks or pleats on fine silk without injur¬ 
ing the fabric. A tracing wheel with rough 
or blunt points will tear and cut silk. 

[117] 















A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


Keep a good supply of pins and needles 
on hand. It is a waste of time to stop in the 
middle of your work and go to the store 
for the necessities. 

Black headed steel pins are the best to use . 
They are much easier to pick up than the 
ordinary metal pin and they are so slender 
and sharp that they will not mar even fine 
fabrics. 

Elastic bands come in handy for slipping 
on a bundle of cut-out pieces or the pattern 
if the envelope is torn. 

Paper weights are excellent for holding the 
pattern to the goods while cutting. No 
sewing room is complete without paper, 
pencils and a sharp knife. 

If You Have no Sewing Room , keep a 
chiffonier or chest of drawers in which to 
put your work. Also reserve one closet 
or part of a closet in which to hang the 
partly finished garments^ 

Where the dining-room table must be used 
for a cutting table, buy the rubber floor 
matting such as is used in hospitals. It is 
thick enough so that a tracing wheel will not 
punch through. It can be rolled up when not 
in use. 

Another way of protecting the table is to 
quilt a thick pad, put this on the table and 
then cover it with table oilcloth, 

[ 118 ] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


If you sew in your living room or bedroom , 
spread out a piece of table oilcloth and place 
the sewing machine on this. After you are 
through sewing it is an easy matter to push 
the machine off the oilcloth, gather up the 
oilcloth and slide the threads and bits into 
the waste paper basket. 

HOW TO STUDY 

Read Lesson I through three or four times. 

Study just one of the subjects at a time. 

After you have read one subject through 
several times, run over it in your mind and 
see if there are any points on which you are 
in doubt. Read it through again, keeping 
in mind the points on which you want 
information. 

After you are through studying Lesson I, 
give yourself a little examination. You know 
you would have to write out an examination 
paper if you were studying in a class. There 
are a list of test questions below. 

Write down your answers and compare 
them with the information in Lesson I 

TEST QUESTIONS 

What styles are most becoming to a stout 
young girl? 

What styles ought a short woman to 
avoid? 

[119] 



A COMPLETE COURSE IN DRESSMAKING 


What colors are most becoming to a 
blonde? 

Does a woman with a sallow complexion 
look well in black? 

Does a stout woman look well in white? 

What are the complementary colors? 
Give list. 

Can you give the definition of a comple¬ 
mentary color? 

Can you state the five rules for combin¬ 
ing colors? 

Which tension of your sewing machine 
needs the most regulating—the bob¬ 
bin or the needle tension? 

Can lace be sewed on with a sewing 
machine attachment? 

Can you make a lap felled seam with an 
attachment? 

What kind of seam is used at the shoulder 
of a coat? 

What seam looks best in sheer materials 
such as organdie? 

What is the correct position for a person 
taking the bust measurement? 

What measurement is taken from arm 
muscle to arm muscle? 

How do you determine the length of arm 
at the wrist? 

Why is a press cloth necessary in pressing 
woolens? 


[120] 



PRELIMINARY INFORMATION 


Is sponging and shrinking woolens the 
same process? Does it answer the 
same purpose? 

A great deal of the data in Lesson I is for 
reference. When you take up the making 
of dresses, Lesson VI, you will want to refer to 
Suitable Styles and perhaps Becoming 
Colors. 

In deciding on the seams to use in making 
the garments in Lessons III, IV, V, VI, VII, 
VIII, IX and X, it will be an advantage to 
have Lesson I handy to refer to. 

The information about taking measure¬ 
ments is for reference later on, too. You will 
see how to apply this material when you take 
up blouses, dresses, pattern making and 
draping. 

Lesson II shows the first steps in applying 
quick and efficient methods to sewing. It 
takes up the making of aprons and housedresses 
just to demonstrate several points in sewing. 

Even if you have sewed before, it will be 
well to study Lesson II. Remember that it is 
not just the aprons and housedresses illus¬ 
trated that you are learning to make but 
you are learning the principles which they 
illustrate. You will find many of the sug¬ 
gestions for the aprons apply to blouses, 
children’s garments and ladies’ dresses. 

To become efficient, study the whole course 
in the order in which the books are printed. 

[ 121 ] 































































































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